Cynthia Chase (Martin) Radican

Cynthia “Cindy” Chase (Martin) Radican, 77, formerly of Warwick, Cranston and Pawtucket, RI, died on Thursday, September 12, at Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls, SD, surrounded by her family.

Born June 17, 1942, in Providence to Kenneth H. Sr., and Bertrice (MacDonald) Martin, she grew up in the Lakewood section of Warwick and graduated in 1960 from Warwick Veterans Memorial High School. While in school, she played clarinet in the marching band, traveling to the Rose Bowl Parade in California, ran track and was in Demoulay.

She attended St. Joseph’s Hospital School of Nursing briefly before going to work in the insurance business. She later worked in the office at the General Electric Baseworks in Providence and as an engineering clerk with the Providence Gas Company, now National Grid, for 25 years. A Steelworker, Cindy’s family jokingly called her Norma Rae because she was the union’s first female steward.

An avid reader of mystery novels, Cindy was also a master gardener skilled at creating beautiful flower beds that blossom from spring through fall. She was always happy to teach her children, grandchildren and anyone willing to learn about flowers, their Latin names and growing patterns. She liked handicrafts like cross-stitching and silk flower arranging, gifting many beautiful pieces to family and friends. She could complete the New York Times crossword puzzle in ink.

She was a long-time member of the Church of the Transfiguration, Edgewood, and served as superintendent of Sunday Schools for several years. She was a 13th-generation Mayflower descendant (Stephen Hopkins) and a member of the Mayflower Society. She was an avid bowler, helping to organize the Providence Gas league for years. She bowled several perfect games and earned awards as the league’s top female bowler.

A self-proclaimed introvert, Cindy had her father’s dry sense of humor and loved being with her family most of all. She leaves behind two loving children, a daughter, Susan Lynn (Radican) McDonald and her husband, Chris, of Pawtucket, and a son, John Martin Radican and his wife, Audrey, with whom she lived in Paullina, Iowa. Raising her children as a single mother in the 1970s and 1980s was certainly a challenge but Cindy had a strong, independent spirit and demonstrated that nothing was impossible with the right attitude. Theirs was a house full of love and laughter. She was the day trip queen and the family, with Nana in tow, was always off on a Saturday adventure to the beach, Block Island or New Hampshire. The family was poor financially but so rich in everything that matters.

She leaves six grandchildren she loved to dote upon: Lila and Abigail Hawryluk of Pawtucket, Mark and Michael Radican of Sgt. Bluff, Iowa, and Kylie and Kenna Braunersrither of Paullina. She also leaves her younger brother, John M. Martin and his wife, Donna, of South Carolina, and many nieces and nephews.

She is predeceased by her parents, older brother Kenneth H. Martin Jr., of Seekonk, Mass., older sister Sandra Martin of Warwick, and sons John Kenneth Radican, who died in infancy, and David Alan Radican, twin of John, of Sgt. Bluff, Iowa.

At her request, there will be a simple service and calling hours on Friday, from 4-7 p.m. in the Home of J.H. WILLIAMS & CO., 210 Taunton Avenue, East Providence.  

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