Mary E Bear

Mary Elizabeth Bear, 96, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, went home to be with the Lord on Monday, April 20, 2020. Born October 8, 1923, in Fort Wayne to Edith (Lantz) and Leo Olinger. Mary graduated from St. Paul’s Lutheran Elementary School and North Side High School in 1941. She married Calvin in February 1944 at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church with the agreement to be charter members of Holy Cross Lutheran Church following the war. She was employed during World War II as a telephone operator working in downtown Fort Wayne. She worked at Howard’s Gift Store and was a successful homemaker. Many of her prized recipes have been passed down three generations. Mary also supported Cal in the business he co-founded in 1962, JB Tool, Die & Engineering Company. Throughout her life, Mary loved spending time with her family and friends, reading, traveling and decorating for the holidays. She had remarkable patience throughout her life. Surviving are her children, Ann (Robert Daniel) Giles, David (Mary) Bear and Mary Pontius (Glen Phillips) all of Fort Wayne, five grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Calvin Bear, and brother Robert (Frances) Olinger. Mary’s final resting place will be Lindenwood Cemetery, Fort Wayne. Funeral arrangements are postponed due to COVID-19 virus. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Alzheimers Foundation of America https://alzfdn.org/ and Allen County SPCA http://www.acspca.org/. A celebration of her life will take place at a later date. Arrangements by D.O. McComb and Sons Lakeside Park Funeral Home 1140 Lake Ave Fort Wayne, IN. To sign the online guestbook go to www.mccombandsons.com