Margrace Prugh Grotefend

Margrace Prugh Grotefend 

1937-2024 

On Wednesday April 17, 2024, Margrace Prugh Grotefend, of Bosque Farms, passed away at age 86 in Albuquerque.  

Margrace was born on April 29, 1937, in Dayton, Ohio, to Charles M. and Mary C. Prugh. She was raised in Tiffin, Ohio, graduated from Columbian High School in 1955, and from Heidelberg College in 1959, where she majored in education with an emphasis in home economics.  

On April 14, 1962, she married William H. (Bill) Grotefend in Tiffin. Together, they raised two children, Mary and Christopher.  

Margrace lived a life of service to others and was absolute in her determination to make the world a better place. She achieved this not only through her 30 years of teaching, but also with her devout involvement in her church.  

She taught home economics in Ohio for four years, and taught elementary education at Red Rock Elementary in Gallup for 26 years.  

Margrace was an active member of the Peralta Methodist Church, where she sang in the choir, and participated in the United Methodist Women, the food pantry, crafty ladies and Kairos prison ministry. She was a longtime member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood chapters T and X. She enjoyed knitting and shared that passion by teaching it to women at the New Mexico Women’s Recovery Academy.  

Margrace was known for her relentless kindness, incredibly warm demeanor and propensity for laughter. Margrace was preceded in death by her mother, Mary; father, Charles, and an infant brother. 

She is survived by her husband, Bill; her two children, Mary M. Fowler (Mark), of Sandia Park, N.M., and Chris Grotefend (Soma), of Durango, Colo.; her sister, Dorris J. Keen, of Lewisburg, Pa.; two grandsons, one great-grandson, several nieces, nephews and cousins.  

A memorial service was held on Saturday, May 4, at Peralta Methodist Church.  

Donations (memorials) may be sent to Peralta Methodist Church, 25 Wesley Road, Peralta, NM 87042. All donations will be divided between the crafty ladies and the food pantry.