Mary was the 8th child out of her 11 siblings. After being orphaned at age 10, she spent some time in an orphanage until her sister Lois Rice was able to remove her and raise her along with her two youngest siblings.
Mary met Danny Brown at a dance for student nurses. Though Mary wasn’t a student she did work for St. Joseph’s cleaning hospital rooms after operations. Danny and Mary married in June 1961. They had two girls Lindy and Dana. The marriage lasted 12 years.
Mary worked for Harbison – Fisher, Gearhart & Owen, and General Dynamics where she worked assembly line jobs/machine shops. She would say she could run any machine that the men could. She met Don Neel at General Dynamics and they were married in August 1985. In 1987 she became a grandmother for the first time. She quit work to stay home and take care of her granddaughter, Tanner
Mary loved working with her hands. She loved tools of all kinds and asked for them as Christmas gifts. She loved gardening and doing her own lawn and if her neighbor’s lawn had weeds she would pull those too. She would also trim their trees, which no neighbor seemed to mind.
Mary was a crafty person and loved making Christmas signs to sell for peoples yards. She would draw it free hand and paint it to perfection. Her favorite place to eat was Golden Corral, but only the one in Burleson. No other Golden Corral could taste better. She loved shopping at Walmart and could be there for hours. She had her favorite parking spot so if her car wasn’t there, neither was she. Mary loved the lord with all her heart and could not wait to get to heaven. IN 2017 dementia took hold of Mary. For four years her life was very difficult and on June 9, 2021 she left this world behind for a better home in heaven.
Mary was preceded in death by her parents Lonnie and Mittie Norris, her sisters Louise Ferguson, Lois Rice, Wanda Burns, Barbara Killough, and Sharon Turner. Her brothers Lonnie Norris, Daniel Norris, David Norris and an infant brother John Henry Norris. Her great granddaughter Raven Nicole Goff and great granddaughter Ellie Mae Tucker.
Mary is survived by her children Lindy and Victor Hughes and Dana Halcomb. Grandchildren Tanner and Anthony Trujillo, Mary Ellen Smith, Gage Marsh and Cheyenne Bates, Amy and Robert Tucker. One great granddaughter Phoenix Wren Trujillo, one great grandson Gentry Maddox Marsh (on his way in August) and one sister Virginia Thompson.
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