Mary E. Howard

Mary Howard, 86, of Mt. Pleasant passed away Saturday, Aug. 2, 2008 at the Isabella County Medical Care Facility. Her funeral will be 11 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 5, at the Charles R. Lux Family Funeral Home, 2300 S. Lincoln, with Pastor Ray Abbey of Prospect Park Church of God officiating. Burial will be in Chippewa Township Cemetery. Friends may call at the funeral home on Monday from 3-8 p.m. and Tuesday from 10 a.m. until the service begins. Memorial contributions may be made to the Norval Morey Cancer Center at Central Michigan Community Hospital. Envelopes are available at the funeral home. Mary was born March 7, 1922, in Bad Axe, the daughter of John and Greta (Scott) Finley. She married the late Thomas Howard on March 31, 1945 in Bad Axe. She worked at the Regional Center for Developmental Disabilities as an Attendant Nurse for 17 years, retiring in 1987. She was a member of the State Employees Retirement Association and enjoyed crossword puzzles and playing cards. Mary is survived by five children, John (Iva) Howard of Whitney, TX, Marvin (Kathy) Howard of Mecosta, Mike (Fran) Howard of Maryland, Nancy Bell of Mt. Pleasant, and Ed (Dorothy) Howard of Mt. Pleasant; 21 grandchildren; and 28 great-grandchildren. Besides her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas; son Richard; daughter, Mary Jane Darnell; two sons-in-law, Gail Bell and Jerry Darnell; grandson, Michael Francis Howard; and two sisters, Mildred Anderson and Mable Finley.