Mary Jane Yates

She is survived by her son Mark Yates, Sr. and his wife Christine, Jennifer Yates Rachman and her husband Mark, Shelley Yates-Magee and her husband Greg and their families which includes her eleven grandchildren, twelve great grandchildren, and two great-great grandchildren.

Mary Jane was raised in Breman, Ohio. She lived a few years in Indiana before moving to the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania suburban area in 1966. She worked for many years as an X-ray technician at a local hospital. After her children were grown, she changed jobs and moved to a company that allowed her to travel the United States on a mobile medical unit as both an X-ray and medical technician. She relished in the fact that she visited or worked in every state in the U.S. In her free time, she enjoyed traveling to Europe with her partner of over 20 years, Dr. Bill Morris. They were both avid collectors of antiques. As she moved into retirement years, she could often be found with Bill at local flea markets, enjoying buying and selling items. Other passions of hers were displaying photos of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, reading, puzzling, and visiting and traveling with family and friends. She spent her final years living in Seal Beach, California near her daughter Jennifer and her family, where she loved living in her condo with sunshine, year-long beautiful weather, and her beloved dog Rusty with whom she is now reunited. She never stopped her love of travel, spending time with Jennifer’s family taking trips to Hawaii, Mexico, Colorado and Europe.

Mary Jane was a creative person: playing piano, cross stitching, painting, and always admiring a beautiful garden. As a child, she wrote a poem for her grandfather’s funeral which we would like to share:

Heaven is a wonderful meeting place

Where there are people of every race

Kings, queens, rich or poor

And there’s room for many more

God calls us to come one and all

And listens to every prayer big or small

God lends us each a helping hand

And leads us closer to the promised land.

A private memorial will take place at a later date in Bremen, Ohio.