MARY A. SHEPHERD

Without sadness, but with fondness and love for a life well lived, this is the announcement of the passing of Mary A. Shepherd on December 3, 2024. She was 97 having been born in Americus, Georgia on March 27, 1927. Mary outlived her three sisters, Pearl, Joan and Jenny and her husband of sixty-four years, Richard Lee Shepherd. The Shepherds had three children of their own, Lee, Diane and William (Bill). Mary also outlived both of her sons.

As a child, Mary moved with her parents and sisters to Detroit, Michigan where she graduated from Denby High School and met her husband. The Shepherd family settled in Grosse Point Park in the 1950's where they raised their children. Mary was not only a good mother, she was employed as the Senior Processor of Accounts Payable for a Michigan pipeline company. Mary rode the bus daily from the suburbs to downtown Detroit during the long years of her full-time employment. She was a reliable employee and retired with a well-earned pension.

After retiring and moving to Florida, the Shepherds became active members of the Community United Methodist Church of Daytona Beach. They were both charitable people and proud to be members of a church that focuses on charity for the less fortunate and homeless. They were also volunteers who delivered Meals on Wheels for many years. After her husband died, Mary continued with charitable work through her church well into her 90's. She had a kind and generous spirit and always offered grace to those in need.

Aunt Mary Shepherd aka Grandma Shepherd is survived by her daughter Diane and her life partner Thelma, and their daughter Sarah, her two grandsons, Colin and Austin, and her many nieces and nephews in Michigan, Florida, North Carolina and Nevada. She is missed by her family and her friends from her church but her death is not a time for grief, it is a time for respect and love for a long and independent life by a person with a big heart who was never selfish and who was genuinely caring of others.

A traditional funeral is scheduled for Thursday, December 19, 2024 at the Lohman Funeral Home, 1423 Bellevue Avenue in Daytona Beach. There will be open casket viewing and quiet time from 10:00 a.m. to noon, with a service to follow by Reverend Katie Harrington. Pastor Dave Troxler will preside at Mary's gravesite for her interment at 1:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Community United Methodist Church at 626 Harvey Avenue, Daytona Beach, FL 32118