Mary Josephine Clayton

Mary Jo Clayton, resident of Cambridge Village in Apex, NC since 2014 and a 62 year resident of New York City, died Tuesday September 19th at age 97.

She was born in Georgetown, KY to Nettie Lutz and Jessie L Clayton (deceased), brother to David L. Clayton (deceased) and James R. Clayton (Marilyn) of Raleigh, NC. She is also survived by nephew Jonathan D. Clayton (Paula) and nieces Laura Cirioli and Carrie Twellman (Chris) as well as 6 beloved great nieces and nephews: Erin and Ryan Clayton, Peter and Allison Cirioli, and Rigsbee and Henry Twellman.

Mary Jo attended High School at Arundel High in Millersville, MD and graduated from Meredith College in Raleigh in 1946. She was declared a distinguished alumna in 2016 for leading the NYC Meredith Alumnae group for many years and for her outstanding work in advertising in NYC. After college Mary Jo started her career in advertising for Hutzler’s Department Store in Baltimore, MD. In 1952 she moved to New York City to work with B. Altman’s and Vogue Patterns. For almost 60 years she worked at multiple advertising agencies with clients such as Clairol and Proctor and Gamble. She was a talented copy writer

who was known by her coworkers as the “Steel Magnolia” for her determination and grit in a predominantly male dominated industry.

Mary Jo took full advantage of all that NYC offered. She was a member of multiple museums and visited exhibits regularly. She loved Broadway and saw hundreds of plays (and saved the programs of all of them). She was an opera aficionado as well as a lover of the NY Philharmonic. Her apartment was always open to friends and family. She hosted many people throughout her years living there and

delighted in sharing her city with them. She also loved to travel and to record her trips with photography and video. She traveled extensively in Europe with friends and nieces and planned every trip for everyone going. She was a wordsmith. She could complete New York Times crossword puzzles in pen, and also delighted in reading books and magazines. Mary Jo made close friends wherever she lived, worked or worshiped. She kept a large family of cousins and dear friends connected to her and each other. In later

years she made full use of texts and emails to keep in touch with all of them. A celebration of her life will be held at Cambridge Village of Apex on Thursday, September 28th at 3 pm. Memorial contributions in lieu of flowers may be made to Greenwood Forest Baptist Church or UNICEF. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared below for the Clayton family.