Viola Marie Green

Green, Viola Marie, a proud and hard-working wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother, died on January 4, 2020, two months short of her 99th birthday.

She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Norbert John Green, and three sons who died in infancy, Dennis, Anthony and Thomas Green. She is survived by seven children, Norbert (Donna) Green Jr., Eugene (Mary) Green, Bernard (Lily) Green, Patty (Mike) Weaver, Firman (Lynn Aunspaw) Green, Ruth (Ron) Schroeder and Mary Ann (Philip) Walzer, 17 grandchildren, 33 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren.

She would not have wanted a long obituary because she preferred to stay in the background, tending to her large family. She was happiest doing something for someone else, whether it was cooking delicious meals, cleaning up afterwards or sitting on the floor playing with her grandchildren. A massive tin of chocolate chip cookies she kept stored in the freezer often mysteriously disappeared.

Her life was centered on her Catholic faith. She met Norb in 1944 at a USO dance where she was a junior hostess. When he asked her if she was busy the following day, she told him: “I’m going to Mass. You can come with me if you want.” That was their first date.

The were married for nearly 63 years until his death in 2008 and were longtime members of St. Anthony Catholic Church in Dayton. St. Anthony, the patron saint of lost articles, held a special place in her heart and helped her and her whole family on several occasions.

Even weeks before her death, she attended Saturday afternoon Mass at Mary Help of Christians Church in Fairborn as a co-parishioner.

She never liked sitting still. She learned how to swim when she was in her 40s and became a frequent swimmer. She loved to bike and hike. In her mid-90s, she walked almost a mile every day.
For the last 12 years of her life, she lived in Yellow Springs with her daughter Patty Weaver and her husband, Mike. She reveled in the accomplishments and adventures of her family (“Do it while you can” was a favorite saying of hers), and her face lit up whenever she was with them.

Friends and family may visit from 4-8pm on Tuesday, January 7 at Westbrock Funeral Home, 1712 Wayne Ave., Dayton. Mass of Christian Burial 10am on Wednesday at St. Anthony Parish, followed by burial at Calvary Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Foundation Fighting Blindness or Ohio Hospice.