Bradlee B. Graves Jr., 74, of Westerly, Rhode Island, passed away peacefully at Westerly Hospital on August 19, 2024, from an illness. He was the son of the late Bradlee B. Graves Sr., and Alaine (Long) Graves. Bradlee was born in Montpelier, Vermont, and spent many summers playing baseball with his cousins and friends in the Sugarbush Resort area. He met his future wife, Deborah Graves, at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he graduated with a degree in communications. In Boston, Massachusetts, he served in the Coast Guard Reserve for five years. His marriage to Deborah led them to move to Westerly, Rhode Island, shortly afterward. Bradlee worked at General Dynamics and then Yardney Corporation before retiring from the Picture Perfect store of Westerly. He loved music, the Beatles, and especially Paul McCartney and Stevie Nicks.
He and his wife enjoyed attending many concerts in the New England area. In addition, he was a great fan of all the New England sports teams, especially the Boston Red Sox. It had been a tradition for Bradlee and his father to attend games at Fenway Park since the late 1950s. Baseball statistician and trivia buff, he possessed an in-depth knowledge of all things related to baseball. His ability to recall information quickly will be greatly missed. Bradlee is survived by his wife, Deborah, his son, Bradlee B. Graves III of Boston, and Lindsey Graves and her fiancé, Christopher Stanton, of Westerly, and his sister, Brenda, and her husband Tom Lowell, of Bridgewater, Massachusetts. He also leaves behind many cousins.
A burial service will be held at the Warren Village Cemetery, Warren, Vermont, on Saturday, September 14, 2024, at noon and a gathering to follow. Donations may be made in Bradlee's memory to The Jimmy Fund; Dana Farber Cancer Institute and The Jimmy Fund, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, MA, 02284-9168, or at www.jimmyfund.org in lieu of flowers.
