Mary Noel Grant

Mary Noel Grant passed away Saturday, April 8, 2017. She was born in 1918 in Kansas City, Missouri. She grew up in Lee's Summit, Missouri, graduated from high school there and received a scholarship to Kansas City University, where she attended for one year. Graduating from the University of Kansas, she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, also the honorary society for the School of Education. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority.

In 1941, Bill Grant and Mary were married. Following their wedding, they went to Key West where Bill reported for active duty on a destroyer. Mary taught school there for one year and when Bill was still at sea, she moved to Miami and was secretary to Admiral Ford, Commander of the 7th Naval District.

Returning to Kansas City at the end of World War II, Bill went to work for Business Men's Assurance and Mary did various volunteer work serving on the boards of the YMCA, Conservatory of Music, the Cockefair Chair of UMKC and various projects of the Kansas City Junior League. In 1973, she was Chairman of the Jewel Ball and Honorary Chairman in 2007 and 2008.

Mary continued her interest in education, taking courses at UMKC and two summers at Cambridge University, a summer at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and one at the American University of Paris.

Since 1990, the Grants have divided their time between homes in Kansas City and California where their son and daughter live and their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. For the last four years Mary and Bill have resided at Claridge Court where Mary would often say how fortunate she was to have met so many wonderful people.

When Mary was 75 years old, she published her memoirs entitled "Pleasant Journey". The book never found its way to the top of any best seller list, but a few copies were soon on the shelves of local book stores. She wrote the book for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She would often joke about keeping a copy of the book around when she was gone to give to them. Mary was a prolific reader and loved to play the piano. She was an enthusiastic poet and could whip up a poem in a moments notice. She was still writing poems at 98. Some of her poems were published in Jim Stowers series, "Innovations."

Mary and Bill celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary in June. She had just organized a 100th birthday party in February for Bill, where her daughter and husband and her grandsons and families from California had joined all the Kansas City family to celebrate the big day for Bill.

Mary leaves behind her husband, Bill; her son Tom and his wife Janie; daughter Laura Gamble and her husband, John; grandsons, Bill Grant and his wife Sarah, Joey and his wife Shanna, Bobby and his wife Anne, Andy Myers and his wife Joanna, and Grant Myers and his wife Abigail, Kate Dickman and her husband Sherman and Paul Gamble. She was very proud of her 17 great-grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her grandson, Scott Myers.

As per her wishes there will be a small family service in the chapel at St. Andrews Episcopal Church. There will be a reception at Claridge Court at 4:15 p.m. on Tuesday, April 18 for family and friends who would like to stop by and remember Mary. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be sent to the UMKC Conservatory of Music, 4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64110.