Mary Beth Doan

Mary Beth was born in Waco, Texas on September 12, 1927, to “Big Mama” Eula Christine Beadle and Oren Clay Felkner. She was the fifth of seven siblings. In her young life she worked in the cotton fields helping sustain her family. At the age of seventeen, she met Charles “Chuck” Doan, who was serving in the military. They married immediately and moved up to West Lafayette, Illinois, where Chuck studied chemical engineering at Purdue University. After graduating, they moved to Battle Creek, Michigan where they lived for the duration of Chuck’s life. There, they celebrated the birth of both their children Tammy Doan and Peter Freedman-Doan. While Chuck was inventing cereals for Kellog’s, Mary Beth made a home for their family and enjoyed golfing and participating in church events. She was proudly featured as a Sears catalog model in the 1960’s. After Chuck’s death in 1983, Mary Beth moved back to Texas to be closer to her family.

In 1992, she met her second love, Richard “Dick” Humphrey. Their love of golf drew them together and they spent many hours on the golf course. Mary Beth was even named the Lago Vista women’s golf legend in 1999. Mary Beth loved church events and never missed an opportunity to wear a sequined sweater or vest. While living in Lago Vista, she loved spending time on the golf course or cooking with her grandchildren.

During her final years of life, Mary Beth was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Dementia, but that never stopped her from enjoying life and having a positive outlook. Despite her lost memories, she was always ready to go on an adventure, explore her surroundings, and interact with whoever was around her. She found shock and delight in hearing her age on any given day. She loved visits from her grandchildren and great-grandchildren who regularly surprised her.

Mary Beth was preceded in death by her parents, siblings, husband Chuck, partner Dick, and son Peter. She is survived by her daughter Tammy, daughter-in-law Carol “Ketl” Freedman-Doan, grandchildren Megan (Patrick) Spencer, Monica (Chris) Farrell, Rachel (Luke) Freedman-Doan, and Anya Freedman-Doan. Her great-grandchildren include Jordan (Sabrina) Aten, Sydney Farell, Arye Farell, Alexa Spencer, and Lennox Silcock. She is also survived by her great-great-granddaughter, Sutton Farrell, and numerous nieces and nephews.

A celebration of life will take place on February 15th.