A Service of Remembrance for Anne Giddings

The anthem at Anne Giddings' memorial service was sung by a 26-member choir which included members of the Greater Middletown Chorale, to which Giddings and her husband, Bob, belonged. 

The anthem, "How Lovely is Thy Resting Place," is from A German Requiem written by Brahms. It was chosen, said Rev. Alison McCaffrey, to honor Giddings' German and Prussian ancestry. 

In the spirit of her heritage, the first verse of the hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," was sung by the choir in German. The song, written around 1500 by Martin Luther, was also sung at Giddings' mother's funeral, McCaffrey said. 

Rev. Jeffrey Braun told mourners that the large flower arrangements which flanked the pulpit were not hot house-grown blooms, but rather came from the Giddings' garden and were arranged by the family. The vases contained the spring colors of yellow daffodils and bright pink bleeding hearts.

Giddings was a Senior Deacon at First Congregational where she was known as a force of nature and a true example of "love in action," when accompanied by her three grandchildren who called her, "Nanny."

"A life well lived is counted by those we touched," said Deacon Joyce Mulholland in a eulogy. "I looked up to her as a big sister. I learned from her; her garden was as metaphor for life," she said. Gidding advised her, "Don't let the vegetables die on the vine," Mulholland said.

Scriptures from Psalm 121 and 123 were read by Giddings' daughter, Charlotte and her 11-year-old granddaughter, Lilly. A reading from 1 Corinthians 13 was presented by Giddings' son, Bob.

"It feels surreal that a woman who was everywhere, doing everything for everyone, and doing it well has physically passed from us and we are stunned," said Braun as he opened the memorial service.

Giddings died on April 25 after having been hospitalized for over a month from injuries she sustained in a one-car accident near her home on March 22.

She was a member of the Cheshire Town Council and a retired educator who worked as an assistant principal in Newington for nearly 20 years and retired as the acting superintendent in Ansonia.