M. Gertrude (Gert) Knowlton died peacefully at her Oak Bluffs home on May 11. She was 103.

She was the wife of the late Edgar L. Knowlton. Born in Marlborough, she was the daughter of the late George F. and Mary Ellen (Clare) Pyne.

Gert was raised in Milford and was a graduate of Milford High School. While raising her family in Holliston, she helped her husband run the family grocery store. In the early ‘70s she was an assistant manager for a Hit or Miss store in Natick. She moved to the Vineyard in 1991. At the age of 79, she took watercolor lessons at the Oak Bluffs Senior Center and discovered the joy of painting. Her beautiful paintings grace the homes of family and friends. She said her time spent here on the Vineyard was some of her happiest, where she found a true sense of peace. She was an inspiration to all who knew her.

She is survived by her daughters, Janice Williams and her husband David of Marlborough; Rosemary Hildreth of Oak Bluffs; and Nancy Mahoney and her husband John of Southborough; 13 grandchildren, 23 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.

She was predeceased by her two sons, Barry C. Knowlton and Mark (Tony) Knowlton.

A funeral mass was held on Saturday, May 16 at St. Marty’s Church in Milford followed by interment in St. Mary’s Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made in her memory to Hospice of Martha’s Vineyard, Box 1748, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568