Elsie Ingram, 89, Nurse, Active Volunteer, Education Advocate

Elsie (Bristow) Ingram, of Warren, passed away peacefully on Dec. 16, 2013, at Scalabrini Villa Inc. Nursing Home, North Kingstown.  She was 89.

Born in Warren, she was the daughter of the late Dennis and Mabel (Paine) Bristow. A 1943 graduate of the former Warren High School, she entered the Army Cadet Nurse Corp and attended Waterbury Hospital School of Nursing in Connecticut and the University of Rhode Island.

Ingram decided at a young age to become a nurse after spending a year at Wallum Lake Sanatorium with tuberculosis, and losing two siblings to the disease. She worked at several area hospitals early in her career and had very fond memories of her days at Pawtucket Memorial Hospital.

She was a supervisor of the practical nurse program at Diman Regional Vocational School in Southeastern, Mass., and was also a clinical instructor for the former Fall River Diploma School of Nursing. Later in her career, she worked at nursing homes in Warren and Bristol and was a substitute school nurse. She was a very dedicated nurse who had a lot of pride in her profession.

After retirement, Elsie became active in Warren politics and was an outspoken advocate for education. She was a member of the Blue Ribbon Panel that studied the need for regionalization of the Warren and Bristol school systems.

She later served on the former Home Rule Charter Committee to determine if Warren would benefit from a charter. She was an active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society at St. Mary of the Bay Church, Warren, and was also a Benedictine Oblate of Portsmouth Abbey. In 1996 she received a Community Service Award for her tireless volunteer work in Warren. 

Ingram was often seen walking her dog or working in her rose garden along the stonewall of her home. She was a farmer at heart and found peace working in the soil.

She was a kind, generous, very determined person, and was always willing to offer a helping hand to someone in need. In her last months of life at the nursing home, “Else.” as she was known, was often seen trying to cheer up the other residents of the home.

She leaves behind two sons, Jerry Ingram and Dennis Ingram, both of Warren, and a daughter Noreen Mercier of South Kingstown. She had eight grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. She also leaves a brother, Warren Bristow of Narragansett, and was predeceased by siblings Noreen Bristow Barker, and John, Vincent and Steven Bristow. 

Arrangements are being handled by Smith Funeral & Memorial Services, 8 Schoolhouse Road, Warren, where family will receive friends on Friday, Dec. 20, from 4-8 pm and Saturday, Dec. 21, at 9 am at the funeral home followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 am in St Mary of the Bay Church, Main Street. Burial will be private.

In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated to the Elsie Ingram Memorial Scholarship Fund to assist a Warren student interested in pursuing an education in nursing. Donations can be sent c/o Bristol Warren Regional School District, Trustee Funds, 151 State Street, Bristol, RI 02809.