Mary Jones Easter

Early on the morning of July 5, 2025, Mary’s devoted husband, Bill, went in Mary’s room to check on, and care for her as he has been doing faithfully and lovingly every morning for a very long time. This time, though, she was preparing to make her way to Heaven. He held her and within 15 minutes, she slipped away in her sleep. Perhaps she was waiting for him to hold her hand and be with her at that moment as he has done so many times before during precious moments in their sixty-four years of marriage.

There were times over the last couple years when Mary would look down the hall and call out to “Mama” as if she saw her mother. Maybe her Mama was there too on July 5th and took Mary’s other hand and welcomed her to Heaven. What a joyful reunion with her family in Heaven that must have been.

We cannot know exactly what happens after an earthly death, but, in resurrection, we know Mary is free of the dementia that took her away from her family and friends slowly and sadly as the years wore on. We are thankful she is now with the Lord and rejoicing in Heaven free from the weaknesses of the earthly body.

Mary was born on May 2, 1929 on a farm in Kernersville, North Carolina. She was born in the front room of the farmhouse where her family lived and where her niece now lives. Because visits to her niece meant visits to her birthplace, she has had the rare gift of being able to visit her exact birthplace many times over the years.

Mary was the youngest of 5 children and by all accounts had a wonderful childhood on the farm growing up with her parents and siblings and with many nearby aunts, uncles, and cousins. Growing up on a farm during the depression taught her the value of conservation. She often referred to herself as a “depression baby” whenever she used her great skills of getting the most out of every purchased item. She was even known to hang a paper towel up to dry and use it again.

When Mary was a teenager, her father developed heart disease and could no longer work on the farm, so Mary, her sister, and her parents moved to the Mt. Tabor community in nearby Winston-Salem, North Carolina. There, Mary’s family joined Mt. Tabor United Methodist Church where Mary was a counselor with the MYF (Methodist Youth Fellowship). Through the MYF, she often went to Lake Junaluska, the Methodist conference center in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina near Asheville, and loved her times there. This would become an inspiration to return to Lake Junaluska during her retirement years.

After graduation from high school at Old Town School in Forsyth County, Mary went to Brevard College in the North Carolina mountains. While she was away at Brevard, a very special young man, Bill Easter, would move with his family from Winston-Salem, where he grew up, to the nearby Mt. Tabor community, where his mother grew up. When Bill and his parents moved to the Mt. Tabor community, they joined Mt. Tabor United Methodist Church. Mary’s mother met them there and, while Mary was at Brevard, her mother wrote to her and shared that she had met the Easter boy. Little did she know that the Easter and Jones families would become close friends and that the Easter boy would become Mary’s husband.

After college at Brevard, Mary worked for Wachovia Bank in Winston-Salem. She loved her family, her church, and roller skating of all things. She even had her own skates!

Meanwhile Bill was away at school and serving in the Air Force, but eventually Bill made his move and Bill and Mary started dating. They were engaged on New Year’s Eve 1960 and got married at Mt. Tabor church on June 10, 1961. Mary moved to Pittsburgh to be with Bill while he was in graduate school at Carnegie Tech (now Carnegie Mellon University). While in Pittsburgh, Mary worked as a bank teller at Mellon Bank. Also, while in Pittsburgh, Mary and Bill welcomed David William in 1963. Shortly afterward, they moved back to North Carolina and settled in Raleigh, where Bill joined the faculty at N.C. State University. They eventually moved to nearby Cary, North Carolina and joined White Plains United Methodist Church when it was three years old. In 1964, they welcomed Susan Mary.

Mary and Bill happily raised their children in Cary where Mary was very active at White Plains as a member of the Pathfinders Class and the United Methodist Women. Mary’s most amazing spiritual gifts weren’t given through memberships in formal groups or committees though, they were given by her extraordinary gift of loving everyone around her. She met people where they were and never criticized them, but instead encouraged and loved on them in the most beautiful and quiet ways. She had a special talent to detect when someone was worried or sad and she would make her way over to them and give them an encouraging hug. She did it over and over just because that is who she was, who her spirit is. Those who were loved on by Mary Easter received the best of blessings.

When the kids were young, Mary started volunteering at the Dorcas Shop, which is now Dorcas Ministries. She loved her time there helping in the thrift shop which raises funds for community support and outreach. In beautiful “depression baby” style, she often found, purchased, and brought home wonderful pieces of clothing for her family. One of Susan’s friends said she always wondered when she made a clothing donation to the Dorcas Shop if Mary would find it and Susan would later show up wearing it. Mary faithfully volunteered at the Dorcas Shop all the way up to the COVID years when the pandemic shut down that volunteer opportunity for Mary.

After Bill and Mary’s kids got out of grammar school, Mary went back to work in banking, first at the Fidelity Bank in downtown Cary and then at Wachovia Bank (now Wells Fargo) on Western Boulevard in Raleigh, where she became head teller. She had great friendships at work and loved her colleagues and loved taking care of her regular customers.

Mary and Bill took David and Susan on a lot of travel adventures as the kids grew up. Many trips involved traversing the country in their pop up Cox camper, eventually visiting 47 states and eating lots of canned tuna for travel day lunches, drinking lots of Tang, and recycling paper towels all along the way. Mary and Bill later traveled to two more of the 50 states, Hawaii and Alaska, so Mary visited every state except South Dakota.

Mary and Bill retired in 1994 and settled into a wonderful retirement life. They continued to live at their house in Cary, staying there for more than 50 years. During the retirement years, they went on a lot of wonderful trips around the country and the world. Eventually, they purchased a little house at Lake Junaluska and spent much of the springs and summers there every year. They developed a large set of friends at Lake Junaluska who kept them busy, with fellowship opportunities almost every day. Mary, Bill, David, and Susan loved spending almost every 4th of July together at Lake Junaluska during those years and also a second weekend each year during the fall leaf season. They always had so much fun experiencing western North Carolina culture like the Pumpkin Roll in Franklin, North Carolina, the Chili Cook-Off in Bryson City, and plays at the Flat Rock Playhouse.

In 2021 Mary and Bill moved to an independent living apartment at The Templeton of Cary retirement community. There they made many wonderful new friends. Mary continued to be greeted by and enjoyed seeing many of those friends right up until a couple weeks before she died.

Mary loved to play Chinese Checkers and would play with anyone who would play with her, and she almost always won. When she could no longer play Chinese Checkers, she would play the card game War and she would almost always win that too even if someone else was playing her cards for her when she was too tired to play. That was fitting because Mary was a winner, but she would never tell you that because she cared only about what was best for those she loved around her. She was faithful, unselfish, loving, encouraging, funny and the best daughter, sister, wife, mother, mother-in-law, aunt, cousin, and friend that one could hope to have. She leaves behind a legacy of inspiration to seek the kind of faith in God she had and to encourage and love on others like she did.

Mary had the best smile and the most beautiful blue eyes. That must be what happens when you love so perfectly… your eyes become beautiful beacons of love and your smile brings joy to everyone around you.

Mary is survived by her precious husband, Bill; her son David and his wife Gretel and grand-dog Julia; her daughter Susan; her nieces Barbara (Ned), Martha, Connie (Ed), and Cathy (Nick), and niece Jean’s husband, Skip; nephews Barry Wayne (Wanda) and Michael (Sheila); and a host of great nieces and nephews and even a great great great niece

.

She is also survived by her precious birthday buddy, Shelby Hinshaw, and her special caregivers, Melody, Shantay, Nitra, Emma, Toni, and Mickey (also honorary granddaughter).

Mary was preceded in death by her mother, Curtis Gordon Jones; her father, Virgil Oran Jones; her brothers Dorsett Jones and wife Mary, Virgil Jones and wife Doris, and Manual Jones and wife Milna; her sister Avahelene, and her niece Jean.

A Celebration of Life to honor and celebrate Mary’s life will be held on Saturday July 19th at 2 pm at While Plains United Methodist Church in Cary, North Carolina. A reception in the church Christian Life Center will follow the service.

Arrangements are being handled by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home in Cary, North Carolina (www.dignitymemorial.com). Memorial contributions may be made to White Plains United Methodist Church (313 SE Maynard Road, Cary, North Carolina 27511) or to Dorcas Ministries (187 High House Road, Cary, NC 27511).