Mary Rynearson (Roberts)

Mary Rynearson was born June 20, 1930, on a farm east of Sturgeon, a small town in Missouri during the Great Depression. She was the eighth of 10 children of Levi and Bessie Roberts, and life was difficult for them.

Her family moved 6 times in the country before finally moving to town when she was 13. After their move, Mary was elated to be able to attend church and do odd jobs to have some spending money during her high school years! She lettered in basketball and enjoyed traveling to the surrounding towns for games.

After graduating high school, Mary moved to Kansas City to attend Secretarial School and lived with her sister, brother-in-law, and their two boys. One day, she was sitting on the steps of their apartment building watching her nephews when she saw a very handsome, smartly dressed young man pull up in what she described as a "kitty car". It turned out that man lived with his aunt in the same building! He noticed her also, and that was the beginning of her lifelong love affair with Jack Rynearson until his death in 2006.

Mary and Jack got married on September 23, 1950, and they took up residence in Independence, Missouri. One of the first things they did as a married couple was join Maywood Baptist Church. Mary jumped right in and became active in the Women's Missionary Union, taught a 4th-grade girl's Sunday School class (for 43 years), sang in the choir, and even served on various committees.

Mary loved children, and she and Jack had three: Rodney, Jackie, and Jeffrey. She also babysat many children throughout the years. When her youngest child started school, she began cashiering for the public school system and continued in that position until she retired in 1988. She remained friends with many of the children she interacted with at church and at the elementary schools she worked at as they grew, got married, and had their own families.

Mary's children and grandchildren remember her as a fun, loving, and creative Mom and Grandma. She was always in motion and loved to help others in any way she could. She was an avid letter writer and always kept in close contact with her many family members and friends. Reading was also a passion of hers, and she especially loved reading and studying the Bible. She loved preparing delicious family meals, sewing, gardening, playing with her children and then grandchildren.

After she and Jack retired, they traveled all over the country, always spending a month every year in Florida with daughter Jackie and her family. They also enjoyed sailing, taking long walks together, and visiting home-bound church members.

In October of 2014, Mary moved to Boca Raton, Florida to be close to her daughter and son-in-law. She died there on October 26, 2021, at the age of 91.

She is survived by her son Rodney Rynearson and his wife Judy, her daughter Jackie Abdizadeh and her husband Bob, her son Jeffrey Rynearson and his wife Susan, her grandson Joshua Drown and his wife Lorraine, her grandson Brad Rynearson, his wife Teryn, and their children Bennett and Parker, her granddaughter Abby Schreier and her husband Ryan, and her granddaughter Brittany Bayley and her husband Tim. She is also survived by two of her siblings, Hazel Jennings and Fred Roberts, her sister-in-law Annette, as well as many of her beloved nieces and nephews.

Mary will be buried in Mt. Washington Cemetary in Independence, Missouri next to her husband Jack. A private family graveside service will take place immediately, and a larger celebration and memorial of Mary's life will be held on a date to be announced later.