Laura Griffin, of Milton, passed away on December 7, 2020, surrounded by her loving family.

Beloved daughter of the late Willmore and Marguerite (Callahan) Holbrow, and stepdaughter of the late Emma (Kutz) Holbrow.  Loving wife of the late John J. Griffin.  Dear sister of Mary Long of Hingham, the late Frederick Holbrow of Braintree, the late Joan Kavanaugh of Quincy, and the late Willmore Holbrow of California.  She is also survived by her sisters-in-law Judy Griffin of Norwell, wife of the late Dennis Griffin, and Mary Holbrow of California, wife of the late Willmore Holbrow.

Devoted mother of Katie A. Griffin of Cambridge, Amy M. Lenane and her husband Michael of Milton, John P. Griffin and his wife Christine of Arlington, and Richard H. Griffin and his wife Maureen of Cohasset.  Proud grandmother of Emily, John, Henry, William, Olivia, Ella, Ryan and Sophia and loving aunt of many nieces and nephews. 

Laura grew up in Dorchester where she attended St. Joseph’s Academy.  She helped out in her father’s greenhouses behind their house on Harvard Street and in their flower shops on Dorchester Avenue and in downtown Boston.  She also spent many fond summers at her family’s home in the Squantum section of Quincy, swimming in the ocean and digging for clams with her friends and siblings.

After graduating from St. Elizabeth’s College in New Jersey, Laura began her career in journalism working in the photo library for the Associated Press in New York City.   She returned to Boston, where she took a job with the Boston Globe, starting out in the Style section and moving to the Metro Section, where she covered the changing landscape of the city in the late 1960s.  

While raising her family in Milton, Laura continued as a journalist, working for several newspapers, including the Patriot Ledger, the Milton Record Transcript, the Quincy Sun and the Milton Times.  Laura was passionate about the reporter’s responsibility to provide citizens with coverage of the inner workings of their government.

She brought the same enthusiasm to raising her family, entertaining her children with a ping pong table in the back yard, organizing block parties in the neighborhood, and filling up her station wagon with her children, their cousins and their friends for a trip to Nantasket or Wollaston beach. 

Laura will be dearly missed by friends, family, neighbors, the readers of her work, and the many people she worked with throughout her career.  

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated in St. Agatha Church, Adams Street at Brook Road, Milton, Saturday, December 12, at 10:15 AM. Relatives and friends invited.

Donations in Laura’s memory may be made to Rosies Place, 889 Harrison Ave, Boston, MA 02118 or The Pine Street Inn, 444 Harrison Ave, Boston, MA 02118.

To view the live stream of the Mass: