Marie Theresa Rindin

We mark the day and mourn the loss of our mother and matriarch, Marie Theresa Rindin. Marie, at 94 years young, passed away peacefully and poetically early Friday evening, 16 June 2023, after receiving bedside prayers from Father Christian Senyoni with family alongside.

Marie was born to European immigrant parents, Katherine Paul and Peter Johnson, in Lowellsville OH in

November 1928 and raised during the Great Depression. She had three sisters and one brother, all of whom she amazingly outlived. She is survived by her three sons, daughter-in-law, four grandchildren, and an array of nephews and nieces.

In a life that spanned 9 decades, it is difficult to know where to start with a woman who saw, experienced,

and endured so much. In a word, however, she was selfless…never putting herself first and never complaining. She was a loving mother, a devoted wife, and an unabashedly doting grandmother. The softest spot in her large heart was reserved for children. Pasta came in a close second.

She was a woman of unshakable faith, forged in her Catholic School upbringing. It was the basis for

everything she did. She was consistent and honest and good. She would look you in the eye when she spoke to you, greeting you with a smile, her blue eyes with a sparkle. She wanted to know about your day, and then she would have a story about her day or latest adventure. She always had a story…perhaps from her childhood, perhaps from her past travels to Alaska or Hawaii, or perhaps from her latest appointment with her favorite hairdresser. She made it a point to know personal things about people, the types of things that mattered in their hearts. She had beautiful cursive handwriting, and she had mastered the art of personal notes and “doctored” birthday cards.

She taught us to swim probably before we could walk, she taught us to read, and she spent hours doing

homework with us…not for us, making sure our foundation in the Basics was rock solid. She was an avid

reader and a huge murder mystery and, specifically, Agatha Christie fan. She kept her house as neat as a pin, and she loved to garden. In later years, it wasn’t uncommon to come home to find her napping outside in the shade with her little bucket hat on after pulling weeds, raking leaves, pondering an outdoor redesign, or just doing a little sweeping. She introduced us to golf and to yoga, of all things, as kids long before it was “cool” or really known. We all learned the proper way to do a headstand thanks to her.

She was an avid sports fan. Her brother, Vic, was a great athlete whom she revered, and he is the reason that Mom never shied away from sport. She may have invented yelling at the TV during a game…any game, she would want to know who you were rooting for, and if you weren’t rooting for her team, then a bet was soon to follow.

And, oh how she loved her grandkids. She fretted over what to get them on so many occasions both large

and small. We would periodically remind her that it wasn’t the material things that mattered to them: They

would remember most of all the time spent with Grandma and the food she always prepared for their visits. The two most indelibly etched sights, smells, and tastes are gingerbread cookies at Christmas and noodle soup year ‘round.

She was always a ready and sage counsel, a great mother, and an eternal friend. We were truly blessed, and I mean that as profoundly and emphatically as possible, to have her in our lives for this long. She loved us unconditionally, and her absence results in a tremendous void. While she was a mini-Mom in stature, she leaves us with an immense legacy to continue. She did, however, prepare us well. We love you.