Mary Ellen Garrity

Mary was born in Montclair, New Jersey, on October 4th, 1938, to Anna (née Guinan) and Richard Tarrant. The youngest of five children, she grew up in Montclair and graduated from Immaculate Conception High School in 1956. She began working as an information operator for Bell Telephone and worked for Bell and its subsidiaries for over 40 years. She met her husband, Philip, also the youngest of five, and soon moved to Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, where they raised their own family of five children. They later enjoyed many years of retirement in The Villages, Florida.

Mary will be remembered as a quiet, spiritual, and giving person. While raising her family in Pompton Lakes, she was an active member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, where she frequently volunteered to care for the sick, elderly, and less fortunate. She continued this commitment well into her retirement, until she was physically unable to do so.

An avid reader, Mary loved taking long walks, especially on the beaches of the Jersey Shore. She was an ace bridge player who competed in leagues wherever she lived, and a formidable Scrabble player who often bested her trash-talking children. She had no choice but to be a New York Mets fan and always took a particular interest when Jacob de Grom was pitching.

She is survived by her five children, Christopher Garrity, Mary Ellen Garrity, Dennis (Jill) Garrity, Timothy Garrity, and Matthew (Lara) Garrity; her nine grandchildren, Annalee Garrity, Christopher Garrity, Shannon Garrity, Lauren (Zeke) Hopka, Chloé Briggs, Jake Briggs, Devin (Caroline) Garrity, Sioban Garrity, and Donovan Garrity; and her siblings Richard (Joan) Tarrant, Robert Tarrant, and Carol Kennedy. She was predeceased by her sister, Jean O'Neil, and her beloved husband of 62 years, Philip Anthony Garrity.

A memorial service for Mary Ellen will be held at the Anderson & Campbell Funeral Home, 3010 Ridgeway Road in Manchester Township, New Jersey on Friday, April 17th from 1130 am to 200pm. A religious ceremony will be celebrated at 1:30pm. Interment will follow at Brigadier General William C. Doyle Memorial Cemetery in Wrightstown, New Jersey at a later date and time. In lieu of flowers, please consider contributions in her memory to the St. Mary's Food Pantry in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey (https://stmarys-pompton.org/food-pantry).

Thank you to all the people who cared for Mary over the years, including the dedicated team of caregivers at Sunrise Senior Living of Wayne and West Essex.

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