Elsie May (Beckett) Bradley was born February 17, 1922 in Fareham, Hampshire, England. She was one of four daughters and one son born to Sarah and Ernest Beckett. When Elsie was four years old, the family moved to Emsworth, Hampshire, England.

Elsie met her husband Joe (Joseph Esker Bradley) in 1942 and they married the following year. They lived in Belfast, Ireland where Joe worked for Lockheed before returning to the USA. In 1945, Elsie finally got passage to come to New York. World War II was getting closer to ending, although it was still nerve-wracking in Europe and Southern England.

Joe’s work eventually brought him to Washington State. They spent many years touring the Northwest and enjoyed camping, fishing, and sight-seeing.

Elsie and Joe were not able to have children but this did not prevent them from being involved with neighborhood children and caring for others. In 1960 Elsie and a friend decided to make a difference in blind children’s lives by learning Braille. It was a time- consuming task. The Lions Club assisted in providing the machines to be used for Braille transcribing.

Elsie and Joe were married 59 years when Joe passed away. Living alone without him became Elsie’s greatest challenge. Elsie’s strong will power (attributed to her British roots) helped her to live independently for the remainder of her life, until her death on August 21 of this year.  Elsie will be missed by those who had the privilege of knowing her.

A simple funeral service and burial will be held on Thursday, September 12 at 1:00 PM at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, 1322 Kimball Ave., Richland.