On September 3, 2026 Grace Skogen celebrated birthday #103 at the Thomas Upham House.
I had the delighted to read to her the Town of Medfield proclamation Honoring her on her 103rd birthday.
AMAZING GRACE
Grace (Dilanian) Skogen was born on September 3, 1923. She was raised in Jamaica plain. She was the oldest of three children and the only girl. Her father was a shoe maker until he lost his job during the Great Depression and her mom went to work sewing ties for a manufacturer. Grace remembers helping her mom by traveling on the train with her younger brother to Boston for pickup and delivery of the ties. Her mom made all of her clothes and beautiful dresses. Grace recalls a teacher commenting on her dress and asking her where she got it when Grace said my mother made it the teacher asked if she could make her one also.
Although she lived in Jamaica Palin She walked every day to Roxbury Memorial High for girls and graduated in 1941 as president of the senior class. Grace gave the graduation speech at Symphony Hall and can still recite it today. Grace was awarded a scholarship to Radcliff but unfortunately was unable to go she had to go to work to help the family.
Grace worked at Athens Olympia as a hostess and then was offered a job at RW Press Prich & Co. an accounting firm in Boston. She said “I can do it.” And she did. She was also a Railroad Annalist before accepting the job that she loved most of all, Wall Street. Grace was one of the first women stockbrokers on Wall Street. Grace said “you have to love what you do and it’s not a job.”
She remembers buying her first car a white Cadillac that she couldn’t drive home because of the shifting, so she had to call her brother to drive it off the lot for her.
She met her husband, Sheridan on her way home from work one evening. She was in NY City near Central Park when she saw him and asked if it was a safe place to walk. He responded “not for a pretty young lady like you” Sheridan walked her home and the rest is history they were married for around 60 years.
Grace never smoked never drank loved to dance, play golf, swim in the ocean and travel. She said “I had a good life.” She and her husband loved to travel Europe.
Grace loved clothes and was always seen wearing a dress, heels and a hat. She was always stylish and was so well dressed (she still is). She loved the designer dress sale at Filenes Basement in Boston and was always in line before the doors opened. Her niece, Lynne remembers going with Grace and her mom when she was just a little girl and thought she would get trampled from all the people running in for the sale.
Grace built her dream home in NJ she picked out everything that she wanted and was only able to live there for a year when Sheridan was transferred to Florida. In Vero Beach, Florida she felt that there was a need for a plaza, so she got to work and helped design a ten store plaza with offices above the stores (including her office.)
Grace never had children of her own her niece, Lynne and her nephew, David are her children they have always been very close.
Today we celebrate Grace turning 103. What a wonderful milestone.
Happy Birthday Grace
We love you.
Prepared by Grace’s family.
From last year’s 102nd Birthday.
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