Mary Frances Gerhardt

Mary Frances Myers Gerhardt, prolific quilter, mapper of the moon, black cat lover, and creative artist, passed away on August 23, 2026 in Culpeper, Virginia after a battle with cancer. She was born on November 13, 1937, the daughter of John F. Myers and Lennie Myers. Over the course of her lifetime, she lived in at least thirty-eight different places, both within the U.S. and internationally. Due to her father needing to find work during the Great Depression and World War II, she and her older brother, John F. Myers, Jr. (“Jay”), had to adapt to being the “new kids” in school, sometimes moving several times within one school year. She graduated from Mount Vernon High School in Alexandria, Virginia, where she was voted the “most athletic” in her senior class, being co-captain of the field hockey team and participating in basketball and softball.

After high school, she attended Longwood College for one year, then entered a map drafting program in Washington D.C. She was asked to go to NASA in Houston, Texas, for a sixty day assignment to help with moon mapping, but then ended up staying at NASA for six years during the period of the Apollo missions. In 1971 she earned her glider pilot license. After her stint at NASA, she attended art school in Georgia, then accepted a job in Front Royal, Virginia with the county government.

She met her husband, David Gerhardt, a chemical engineer, in Front Royal. He had been looking for someone to help him map a piece of property and was given her name. When he met her, he realized that they had some common interests and asked her out for dinner. While at dinner, David told her that he was not interested in marriage and Mary Frances informed him that she was fine with that. David ended up proposing to her on their fourth date and they were married within four months.

Because of David’s work, he and Mary Frances moved quite often. They enjoyed living in Brazil for four years and learning Portuguese. While there, they adopted their first black cat, Gato Preto I. (Gato Preto is “black cat” in Portuguese.) Following Gato Preto I, there was Gato Preto II-V, with Mary Frances’s final black cat being named Ralphie.

Mary Frances became interested in quilting and over the course of decades created many beautiful and interesting projects. She and David enjoyed attending retreats at Ninemile Valley Ranch in Montana, in which the wives would quilt and the husbands would go on trail rides.

Being connected to a church was important to David and Mary Frances, so they were part of many different churches over the years. Mary Frances stated that her favorite place she had lived in was Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania due to their involvement with St. George’s Parish in Titusville, NJ. She often spoke of the wonderful clergy and church members there.

Mary Frances is preceded in death by her parents, her husband David Gerhardt, and her brother John F. Myers, Jr. She is survived by her nephew, Eric S. Myers and his wife Amber S. Myers, of Charlottesville, Virginia, and their children Annelise (Daniel) Gursch-Myers of Graz, Austria, Peter (Angelina) Myers of Charlottesville, Virginia, and Anneka Myers of Charlottesville, Virginia. She is also survived by her great-great niece Elliana Gursch-Myers of Graz, Austria and her sister-in-law Marie M. Myers of Warrenton, Virginia.

Our family wishes to thank Dr. Pranav D. Patel, Dr. Kurt L. Maggio and Brenda Bonds, R.N. for their kind and thoughtful care for Mary Frances and support and encouragement for us over the past two years.

In memory of Mary Frances, please consider a contribution to

MAD Cats Rescue

108 Schoolhouse RD, Suite 101 A

Madison, Virginia 22727

(madisoncommunitycats.org)