Mary Lou Habib

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Mary Lou Habib on December 31st, 2024, at the age of 93. Mary Lou was born on August 27th, 1931, in Aurora Illinois. She was orphaned and raised by Catholic-German nuns as both her parents were deceased at a very young age. In Aurora, she attended the all-girls Madonna Catholic High, and after graduation, followed her sister Madeline to Florida. At age 18, she ventured out and travelled by train to Washington DC, taking her first job with the FBI as a typist. In DC, she took residence with several other FBI typists on Dupont Circle, well before it became fashionable to reside there. At age 21, on a blind date, she met the love of her life, Edmund Habib. After two years of courting and having prompted Ed to “make-a-decision,” they were married at the St. Thomas Aquinas Church on July 31st , which Ed recalls was the hottest day of that year.

Mary Lou began her second career as a homemaker at 7208 Landsdale Street, District Heights MD, where she raised five children, a boy and 4 girls, managed countless sleepovers, fed multitudes of neighborhood friends and helped to create a safe haven for several close family relatives that were just getting their bearings. During those years, she took up crocheting, swimming, tap & ballroom dancing, cooking, volunteer work at the church and found joy in the family and home that they built. Along the way our matron took up golf, learned to appreciate the theater & Arts, reviewed presidential mail for the White House, was an avid Redskin fan and always a very astute reader of all things political. Most important and throughout her life, she remained rooted in her upbringing and was best acknowledged as a spirited advocate and beacon for the poor and destitute and a fervid believer in the Democratic Party principles and policies.

Preceded in joining the Lord was Mary Lou’s first daughter, Judith Ann.

While many have lost a friend and kind soul, Mary Lou is survived by her husband and best friend Edmund (Ed), her son David and wife Kathy, Bonnie and partner Joesph, Lisa and husband Michael, Sharon and husband Al; Grandchildren, Brian (& wife Cathy), Eric, Shawn (& wife Sarah), Sarah, Nicholas, Scott (& wife Alecia), Jessica, Alberto, Joy; Great grandchildren, Brooke, Sasha, Ethan, Selah.

A viewing is at St. Francis Assisi Catholic Church from 10:00am-11:00am, Wednesday January 8th, 2025 located at 6701 Muncaster Mill Rd, 20855. Burial will follow the Mass at All Souls Cemetery, 11401 Brink Rd, Germantown MD, 20876. The reception and celebration of Mary Lou’s life will be held starting at 1:30pm at Outta The Way Café, 17503 Redland Rd, Derwood MD, 20855.

For those who can not attend in person, please contact Mary Lou's daughter, Sharon del Rosario via email at [email protected], to be added to a private Facebook live stream video of the services.