Marie A. Graf

Mom passed away peacefully on May 13, 2017. Marie was born in Oakland, CA to Edward J. & Mary G. Joaquin on Dec. 20, 1930. She was a small baby (not a preemie) with a round face. She was wrapped in a blanket and placed in a drawer to keep her warm, thus how she got her nickname "Dolly".

She met her husband of 64 years in junior high. The high school sweethearts graduated from Fremont High School in Oakland, CA in 1949. After graduating, Dolly attended Laney Trade School 5 days a week from 8-5 and graduated in a year as a dental assistant along with her sister, Emily. They were the 2nd graduating class. Bob went on to San Jose State College before being called to duty in the Naval Reserve during the Korean conflict.

She married Robert A. Graf on July 25, 1953 at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church in Oakland. Bob, returning from overseas, barely made the wedding because his ship had stopped in Hawaii for 2 days for repairs. The family joke was Bob tried to delay the wedding. While Bob was overseas, Dolly had to make all the wedding arrangements. Sixty days later he was shipped back to the Philippines. Marie and Bob were blessed with two children: Craig born in March, 1957 and Karen born in March, 1958. Born a year and two days apart, Craig and Karen were known as Irish Twins.

Being transferred by the Bell System, Marie and Bob moved their family to Utah in May of 1962. They were once again transferred to Colorado for 6 years until Bob's retirement in 1988 when they returned to Salt Lake City, UT.

Mom may have been strict with her family, but she loved them dearly. There was no sneaking in late at night as kids because she could hear a pin drop. Mom loved to talk about her family and was always showing pictures of her kids, grandkids and great grandkids to everyone. Her granddaughter, Jennifer, would always tell her, "Trust Me, Grandma", and even made a framed calligraphy with that saying where grandma hung it on the wall for all to see. Daniel, her grandson, would always insist, "I'm your favorite, huh Grandma".

Marie is survived by her husband, Bob Graf, of Salt Lake City; son, Craig Graf, of Salt Lake City; daughter, Karen VanSlooten, of South Jordan; grandchildren: Jennifer Kuhn (Ryan) of West Jordan and Daniel VanSlooten of South Jordan; great-grandchildren: Faith and Taylor Kuhn; sister, Emily Franklin, of Castro Valley, CA; and niece, Stacey Bales, of Union City, CA.
Preceded in death by her parents, Edward J. & Mary G. Joaquin; aunt, Mary Burzo; and cousin, Linda Rose.

A viewing will be held on Sunday, May 21, 2017 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at St. Vincent's Catholic Church, 1375 Spring Lane, Salt Lake City, UT with a Catholic Rosary immediately following. Funeral services will be held Monday, May 22, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Vincent's Catholic Church with interment at Mt. Calvary Cemetery.

We'd like to give a special thank you to the staff at Holladay Health Care, who were very loving and helpful with our mom's care. Thank you to Dr. Lisa Kuwahara, Dr. Peter Steele and Dr. Ron Wilkins.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the American Diabetes Assoc., Utah Food Bank or a charity of your choice.

Funeral Home:
Jenkins-Soffe Mortuary-Murray
4760 South State Street
Murray, UT 84107