Mary as those her know her could guess, was an excellent student. Excelling in math but also winning essay writing contests and trying her hand at drawing. In 1944 at age 14 Mary received an Auxiliary Award from the Legion and composed a speech that included: “It is especially encouraging for a girl to be honored with this distinction. I think that we girls will have a very important job to do in the post war world, the world of our future. It will require real courage, a high quality of service, and American -ism that can stand the test.” She was a true feminist! True to herself and fiercely independent.
Mary graduated from St. Francis high school in 1948 as valedictorian and apparently received a scholarship to Villa Maria College where she attended school until at least 1950.
Mary joined the Navy and went to boot camp in 1951 and was, literally, shipped to Hawaii in 1952. Based on the pictures, it was fun being a WAVE. Mary joined the Navy because she wanted to go to Hawaii and indeed she did after seeing Arizona, going to a bullfight in Tijuana and hanging loose in California.
Mary met her husband Ed while working in a bank in Clearfield PA. She said she was paid less than the men but had to teach them all and “that she cut her teeth working in the bank”. Mary and Ed were married in 1958. Mary and Ed had two children Mark born in 1959 and Cathleen born in 1967.
Mary and her family moved to Orlando in 1970, opened an Irish restaurant in Altamonte Springs, and started their own accounting firm Mared. Mary and Ed certainly loved to celebrate – anything! Meals that lasted for hours at Ruth Chris’s or the Red Lobster, drinking Miller Lite by the pool with a Benson and Hedges Methol cigarette in her hand. Every year, Cathleen’s birthday week was spent at a condo in New Smyrna Beach enjoying puzzles, steak and eggs, watching the waves and of course some Miller Lite.
Mary became the bookkeeper for St. Charles School when her daughter started 2nd grade at the school. She loved the St. Charles School family and the parents that she helped everyday. There apparently was a secret hotdog fund she created to cover those unexpected costs. Mary was the one everyone went to to “get things done”. Mary retired from St. Charles in 2004 and continued to do taxes and manage books until her pencil ran out of lead. She has many extraordinarily long time clients that came every year to have their taxes done. Mary always knew someone to help solve any problem – she had her people that stayed loyal and true over the many years.
Mary’s son Mark died in 1978. Mary and Cathleen were always very close, a bond that grew stronger while Ed was sick. You could always start up a game of penny ante poker, or play with a labrador retriever or jump in the pool to pass the time with Ed. Mary was very proud and supportive of her daughter finding ways to allow Cathleen to go to Rollins College – not once but three times! They talked every week day morning on Cathleen’s way to work, Mary always answered the phone with how is my beautiful, wonderful, smart, strong daughter today?
Mary loyally had lunch with her friends that were teachers at St. Charles School every month and joined in at her neighborhood happy hour – until she was done with the conversation and slid away to her home.
Things about Mary – she was very sentimental but kept it quiet. She saved everyone of her report cards from grade school and several of her essays. She always wanted to go to Alaska but never had a travel bug after her stint in the Navy. She laughed – all the time. She was proud – if you did not know she was sick these last few months – you would never be able to tell. Any game – she loved games and card, she was in a bowling league, worked in Washington DC, and played softball. She loved yard work but did not love to cook. She was a voracious reader and owned more jigsaw puzzles than anyone should.
Her life was vibrant and full of love and laughter, patience, solitude, strength and wit. She fought the good fight and won the race.
Cathleen and Kevan and the rest of the family wish to invite everyone to Mary’s “After Party” following the 12:30 pm funeral mass. The address is 1442 Nolan Court Orlando Florida 32814, Baldwin Park. Hint – for easy parking park in the Publix parking lot just across the street from Nolan Court.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Sisters of St. Joseph in St. Augustine, Florida, (http://www.ssjfl.org/) or Erie, Pennsylvania (http://ssjerie.org/)
COMPARTA UN OBITUARIO
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