Grace Lucille Mulloy passed away May 2, 2025 at the age of 101. She was born Grace Lucille Miller September 29, 1923 to Bessie Hazel Miller and Frank Edward Miller in Eagle Butte.
Grace graduated from Eagle Butte High School in 1941 and moved to Long Beach, CA with a few childhood girlfriends and found work in the wartime economy. After returning to South Dakota, she went to work at the Cheyenne River Agency. It was there that she met her husband, James “Jim” Thomas Mulloy. They were married in 1947. They lived initially in South Bend, IN, where Jim was attending Notre Dame, and later returned to South Dakota to begin their family.
They had two daughters, Patricia Ann and Elizabeth Jean. They were very involved in 4-H club and rodeos, and Saturday nights would often find everyone at the Parade Hall for a lively night of square dancing.
Grace worked as a clerk typist for many years in Timber Lake and
September 29, 1923 – May 2, 2025
Pierre. After moving to San Diego County, CA she worked for the San Diego County Welfare Department as a quality control clerk.
She loved Jazzercise classes and shopping but her real love and passion was bowling. She began bowling while living in Timber Lake in the mid-1950s and continued her passion for the sport after moving to California. In 2019, she represented the State of California at the National Senior Bowling Tournament in Cincinnati, OH where, at 95, she was the oldest participant. She bowled her last frames in December of 2024 at the age of 101.
Grace had a sense of humor, loved a good joke, and loved to dance. At her 100th birthday party, she was on the dance floor with all of her nephews, a memory she no doubt cherished.
Grace was preceded in death by her parents, Frank and Hazel Miller; her husband of 63 years, James Mulloy; and her siblings, Bethel, Edward, Patti, and Jean.
She is survived by her daughters – Pat Mulloy of Escondido, CA and Liz (Tom) Howell of Santa Maria, CA; granddaughter Bridget (Josiah) Ross of Santa Rosa, CA; greatgranddaughters Kaylee and Sidney; and granddaughter Brandi Howell of Albany, CA.
A rosary was held in the chapel of Dudley Hoffman Mortuary on May 19. The funeral was at St. Louis de Montfort Catholic Church on May 20 followed by inurnment at the Santa Maria Cemetery.