Lucy Coates Mitchella

Lucy loved her family passionately and devotedly. She enjoyed hosting and cooking for family gatherings, especially Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Additionally, she always made sure that her daughter, Ananda, and her grandchildren, McKenzie and Sage, had a birthday party every year with cake, presents, hugs, and lots of smooches. Lucy was a great cook, and she loved cooking for her family. She especially loved cooking with her daughter and her two grandchildren. She had a highly developed maternal instinct; she smiled and laughed with babies and children wherever and whenever she saw them. Lucy's love for dancing and singing was always evident at family parties, where she could be seen leading the dancing with some of her favorite songs, including "Dancing In the Moonlight" by King Harvest. At family karaoke parties she could be seen (and heard) putting her heart and soul into song after song, especially her favorites, "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue" and the Patsy Cline hit, "Crazy."

Lucy loved animals, especially kittens and cats. She enjoyed cats throughout her life, including her own, as well as her daughter's cats.

Lucy loved visiting farms and farmers' markets; on weekends she and her husband John always shopped at farmers' markets. When the weather was inclement they would drive an hour to go to the indoor year-round farmers' market in Stonington. She knew each farmer's specialty and loved to talk with the farmers and praise their produce. Many of the farmers knew her on a first-name basis and would set specialty items aside for her.

Lucy loved plants, especially herbs. She harvested wild edible plants and herbs for her numerous homemade teas and tinctures, and with her daughter, Ananda, founded Blissful Botanicals. Through Blissful Botanicals they shared their love of plants and healing by making and selling natural beauty products such as face creams, lip balm, salves, and more.

She was creative in other ways, too. She studied jewelry-making and metalsmithing so that she could make necklaces and rings for her family and friends. She loved precious stones, gems, and beads, and she applied her love and skill to make beautiful jewelry for her loved ones.

Lucy was a talented seamstress; she enjoyed making dresses for her granddaughter, as well as sewing and repairing clothes for her family.

She enjoyed painting and drawing plants. One of her favorite creations is the lady slipper stained glass cupboard in her kitchen, which she envisioned and then drew—after spending months studying the art of creating stained glass windows.

Lucy attended Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa, where she earned Honors with a near-perfect GPA. She was a life-long learner; in particular, she studied methods of healing and Self-development. She cared deeply about the health of the planet and that of people around the world. "Healing the planet" was one of her self-described life-long missions. Towards that end, she studied with great teachers and applied their knowledge to help others. For example, in 1973, she traveled to Spain to study with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi to become a teacher of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique. She practiced Transcendental Meditation twice a day for her entire adult life; moreover, she taught TM at UCONN and throughout the greater Hartford area with her husband John until her retirement last year.

Lucy also completed an intensive in-residence apprenticeship course in herbalism with Rosemary Gladstar. This course gave her knowledge and experience with plants, which she generously shared with clients, friends, and her family.

Lucy studied Ayurveda and earned the distinction of becoming an Ayurvedic Counselor through the New England Institute of Ayurvedic Medicine.

She studied massage and became a Licensed Massage Therapist. She developed her own private practice and used her knowledge to help clients and her family.

Additionally, she took a hands-on course in Plant Spirit Medicine, which helped her develop her intuitive connection to the healing power of plants.

Lucy loved working with women and helping women. One of her favorite courses was learning Maya Abdominal Massage from the gifted healer, Rosita Arvigo. Lucy applied the wisdom and knowledge in this course to help women with menstrual issues. Her favorite aspect of this work was in helping women who had difficulties getting pregnant; she helped many women become pregnant and have healthy babies.

Lucy loved her big Italian family, the Angelinos, her cousin Stephanie and her family, and getting together with them for holidays and the annual Angelino Family Reunion. Lucy loved being Italian, and she thoroughly enjoyed her two trips to Italy with her husband, John. In 2005, she spent two weeks in Rome and a few days in Paris. In 2017, after spending a few years learning to speak Italian and then planning her trip, she and John spent two perfect weeks in Tuscany, where they stayed in three agra-tourismos and visited natural hot springs and beautiful hilltop cities. Lucy thrived in Italy. She loved the people, the food, the art and architecture, and the healthy lifestyle.

Lucy is survived by her husband John Hill of Marlborough, CT; her daughter Ananda Wilson and her husband Eric Wilson, both of South Hadley, MA; her granddaughter McKenzie Wilson of South Hadley, MA; and her grandson Sage Wilson of Brooklyn, NY; her sister, Lita Griffin and her husband Marty Griffin, and her niece, Sarah Griffin, of Watertown, CT.

Friends and family are invited to download comments, memories and photos using the link below.

Thank you.

A private memorial celebration for Lucy Mitchella will be held on Sunday, March 30. In lieu of flowers, please send perennial bulbs to plant in her gardens. Donations in her memory can be sent to the Neag Comprehensive Cancer Fund at https://www.foundation.uconn.edu/fund/neag-comprehensive-cancer-center-fund/.