PLAINFIELD - Margaret F. Carty, 87, a longtime resident of Plainfield, died peacefully March 31, 2011, at Woodridge Nursing Home in Berlin. She was born in New York City on May 1, 1923, the daughter of Egyed and Margaret (Hudeczek) Colman. Margaret graduated from Washington Irving High School in 1940 and attended Hunter College. She and the late Cyril F-A Carty resided in New York City and Pennsylvania before relocating to Vermont in 1951. She lived the rest of her life in the Marshfield and Plainfield area. She considered raising her three children to be her greatest accomplishment. She was famous in Plainfield for making candied apples at Halloween. After her children left the nest, she worked as an administrative assistant for the Vermont Department of Social Welfare and retired in 1985. She treated co-workers like family, supporting them in ways that went above and beyond her job description such as organizing skits, softball games and other morale-boosting activities. She wrote a book entitled "Christmas in Vermont" published by The New England Press. As a way of giving back, she knitted hundreds of hats and donated them to children and adults. She was upbeat and positive; kind, intelligent and inquisitive; had a wonderful, wry sense of humor and enjoyed playing pranks. She liked baseball, smiley-face buttons and cats. She was innovative and had a couple of inventions patented. When asked how to best live one's life, her advice was, "Stick it out." She is survived by three children: John W. Carty and his wife, Mary, of Mesa, Ariz.; Thomas F-A Carty and his wife, Lorna, of Barre, Vt.; and Lucy M. Blue, of Plainfield. She is also survived by a sister, Lillian Hetherman, of Eastpointe, Mich.; four nieces and nephews; eight grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that any donations be made to the Paralyzed Veterans of America, 7 Mill Brook Road, Wilton, NH 03086. She said, "Death is not an end, but only the beginning of another phase of nature." Private family services will be held at a later date.