Jefferson City News-Tribune (MO) - October 29, 2020:
Mary Elizabeth (Mary Beth) Martz, 72, of Lebanon, New Hampshire, passed away on Wednesday, October 21, 2020, surrounded by family, after a seven year battle with breast cancer. Mary Beth was born on July 14, 1948 in Wardsville, a daughter of Marcellus and Pauline (Stegeman) Markway.
Mary Beth attended St. Stanislaus School in Wardsville and was a 1966 graduate of Helias High School. Nobody knew how to provide comfort like Mary Beth Martz. Her voice, tender and soothing, made everything she said sound like a lullaby. Whatever the issue, big or small, she seemed to have the answer, and after providing it, she would punctuate the conversation by saying that she was sending white light. For Mary Beth, there was no greater force than the distillation of all the colors of the rainbow: beautiful, balanced, powerful.
Beloved wife, selfless mother, peerless grandmother, Mary Beth lived a life filled with the things most important to her: family, friends, art and love. Her wanderlust took her around the globe, from the streets of Paris to the woods of Maine to everywhere in between. She sought experiences - not the vapid sort that can saturate days but rich, fulfilling, meaningful ones, to remember, to savor, to cherish. What Mary Beth may not have realized is how essential she was to these experiences. Her ability to be unintentionally hysterical was unmatched. She would utter an off-handed remark that caused ripples of laughter and a minute later drop an observation rich with wisdom. "It's not old," she would say of something that had seen better days, "it's well-loved."
Mary Beth didn't see life through rose-colored glasses. They were rainbow-colored. The world's palette, bright and dark, fluorescent and incandescent, inspired her. In college, she studied art. She adored Mary Cassatt, the impressionist painter whose portraits of mothers and children simplified a universe that so often felt complicated. Mary Beth raised her three boys and two girls with Otto Rieke in Kansas City before her life's third act - a hunt for everything that's beautiful in the world.
Wherever Mary Beth went, she found community. In trips to Paris, each arrondissement was its own unique playground. In Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where she moved after Kansas City, she made a habit of befriending neighbors and volunteering at the universities where Tom worked - both of which she continued at later stops. In Bloomington, Indiana, she spent countless hours helping maintain the T.C. Steele State Historic Site, which honors the artist who taught students at Indiana University "to see the beautiful in nature and in life." In Bangor, Maine, she urged visitors to "come into l'espace creatif," the makeshift art studio where she painted. While there, she helped establish the Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship at Husson University, which sends students to study around the globe. She wanted others to see the amazing things the world had gifted her. Mary Beth later moved to New Hampshire to be closer to family.
Once, on a whim, she gathered scrap wood and built them a chicken coop. She would make creations out of marzipan that were almost too pretty to eat. Almost. She found another happy place, StoneLedge Stables, which runs nature camps for children and abides by a motto close to Mary Beth's heart: "Connecting hearts and minds in the natural world." Everything about her was natural - the charm, the care, the peace she emanated. If someone was in need, she would show up in a blink - usually wearing Birkenstocks and wool socks, even on the coldest winter days. Mary Beth always urged others to "thank your feet." Otherwise, she said, "you won't get very far in life." Even as cancer tried to slow her down, Mary Beth summoned the energy to pack 25 hours of deeds into a 24-hour day. No one could say for sure where she found this unlimited reservoir of strength. Maybe she saved a little of that white light for herself.
Mary Beth is survived by her husband, Tom Martz of Lebanon, New Hampshire; son, Adam Rieke (Amy) of Naperville, Illinois; daughters, Sara Passan (Jeff) of Kansas City and Catherine Pettus (Jason); grandchildren, Gabriel and Elizabeth Rieke, Jack and Luke Passan, Alice and Jude Pettus; mother, Pauline Markway; siblings, Marc Markway (Betty), Dennis Markway (Pam), Jude Markway (Mary), Donna Bernskoetter (Wayne), Emily Crawford (Gary), Albert Markway (Debbie), Rita Paul and John Markway (Lisa); and dozens of nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her sons, Gabriel and Michael Rieke; father, Marcellus Markway; and brother, Chris Markway.
There will be a private family celebration of love and remembrance in Maine with her husband, children and grandchildren. A celebration of life will be held at a later date at the Bolton Home in Wardsville. If you would like to honor Mary Beth with a Mass, candle-lighting or Rosary, please do so in your own home or parish of choice, or you may donate to your favorite charity, or to Husson University, Advancement Office, 1 College Circle, Bangor ME 04401-in memo line-Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship.
Mary Elizabeth (Mary Beth) Martz, 72, of Lebanon, New Hampshire, passed away on Wednesday, October 21, 2020, surrounded by family, after a seven year battle with breast cancer. Mary Beth was born on July 14, 1948 in Wardsville, a daughter of Marcellus and Pauline (Stegeman) Markway.
Mary Beth attended St. Stanislaus School in Wardsville and was a 1966 graduate of Helias High School. Nobody knew how to provide comfort like Mary Beth Martz. Her voice, tender and soothing, made everything she said sound like a lullaby. Whatever the issue, big or small, she seemed to have the answer, and after providing it, she would punctuate the conversation by saying that she was sending white light. For Mary Beth, there was no greater force than the distillation of all the colors of the rainbow: beautiful, balanced, powerful.
Beloved wife, selfless mother, peerless grandmother, Mary Beth lived a life filled with the things most important to her: family, friends, art and love. Her wanderlust took her around the globe, from the streets of Paris to the woods of Maine to everywhere in between. She sought experiences - not the vapid sort that can saturate days but rich, fulfilling, meaningful ones, to remember, to savor, to cherish. What Mary Beth may not have realized is how essential she was to these experiences. Her ability to be unintentionally hysterical was unmatched. She would utter an off-handed remark that caused ripples of laughter and a minute later drop an observation rich with wisdom. "It's not old," she would say of something that had seen better days, "it's well-loved."
Mary Beth didn't see life through rose-colored glasses. They were rainbow-colored. The world's palette, bright and dark, fluorescent and incandescent, inspired her. In college, she studied art. She adored Mary Cassatt, the impressionist painter whose portraits of mothers and children simplified a universe that so often felt complicated. Mary Beth raised her three boys and two girls with Otto Rieke in Kansas City before her life's third act - a hunt for everything that's beautiful in the world.
Wherever Mary Beth went, she found community. In trips to Paris, each arrondissement was its own unique playground. In Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where she moved after Kansas City, she made a habit of befriending neighbors and volunteering at the universities where Tom worked - both of which she continued at later stops. In Bloomington, Indiana, she spent countless hours helping maintain the T.C. Steele State Historic Site, which honors the artist who taught students at Indiana University "to see the beautiful in nature and in life." In Bangor, Maine, she urged visitors to "come into l'espace creatif," the makeshift art studio where she painted. While there, she helped establish the Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship at Husson University, which sends students to study around the globe. She wanted others to see the amazing things the world had gifted her. Mary Beth later moved to New Hampshire to be closer to family.
Once, on a whim, she gathered scrap wood and built them a chicken coop. She would make creations out of marzipan that were almost too pretty to eat. Almost. She found another happy place, StoneLedge Stables, which runs nature camps for children and abides by a motto close to Mary Beth's heart: "Connecting hearts and minds in the natural world." Everything about her was natural - the charm, the care, the peace she emanated. If someone was in need, she would show up in a blink - usually wearing Birkenstocks and wool socks, even on the coldest winter days. Mary Beth always urged others to "thank your feet." Otherwise, she said, "you won't get very far in life." Even as cancer tried to slow her down, Mary Beth summoned the energy to pack 25 hours of deeds into a 24-hour day. No one could say for sure where she found this unlimited reservoir of strength. Maybe she saved a little of that white light for herself.
Mary Beth is survived by her husband, Tom Martz of Lebanon, New Hampshire; son, Adam Rieke (Amy) of Naperville, Illinois; daughters, Sara Passan (Jeff) of Kansas City and Catherine Pettus (Jason); grandchildren, Gabriel and Elizabeth Rieke, Jack and Luke Passan, Alice and Jude Pettus; mother, Pauline Markway; siblings, Marc Markway (Betty), Dennis Markway (Pam), Jude Markway (Mary), Donna Bernskoetter (Wayne), Emily Crawford (Gary), Albert Markway (Debbie), Rita Paul and John Markway (Lisa); and dozens of nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her sons, Gabriel and Michael Rieke; father, Marcellus Markway; and brother, Chris Markway.
There will be a private family celebration of love and remembrance in Maine with her husband, children and grandchildren. A celebration of life will be held at a later date at the Bolton Home in Wardsville. If you would like to honor Mary Beth with a Mass, candle-lighting or Rosary, please do so in your own home or parish of choice, or you may donate to your favorite charity, or to Husson University, Advancement Office, 1 College Circle, Bangor ME 04401-in memo line-Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship.
Jefferson City News-Tribune (MO) - October 29, 2020:
Mary Elizabeth (Mary Beth) Martz, 72, of Lebanon, New Hampshire, passed away on Wednesday, October 21, 2020, surrounded by family, after a seven year battle with breast cancer. Mary Beth was born on July 14, 1948 in Wardsville, a daughter of Marcellus and Pauline (Stegeman) Markway.
Mary Beth attended St. Stanislaus School in Wardsville and was a 1966 graduate of Helias High School. Nobody knew how to provide comfort like Mary Beth Martz. Her voice, tender and soothing, made everything she said sound like a lullaby. Whatever the issue, big or small, she seemed to have the answer, and after providing it, she would punctuate the conversation by saying that she was sending white light. For Mary Beth, there was no greater force than the distillation of all the colors of the rainbow: beautiful, balanced, powerful.
Beloved wife, selfless mother, peerless grandmother, Mary Beth lived a life filled with the things most important to her: family, friends, art and love. Her wanderlust took her around the globe, from the streets of Paris to the woods of Maine to everywhere in between. She sought experiences - not the vapid sort that can saturate days but rich, fulfilling, meaningful ones, to remember, to savor, to cherish. What Mary Beth may not have realized is how essential she was to these experiences. Her ability to be unintentionally hysterical was unmatched. She would utter an off-handed remark that caused ripples of laughter and a minute later drop an observation rich with wisdom. "It's not old," she would say of something that had seen better days, "it's well-loved."
Mary Beth didn't see life through rose-colored glasses. They were rainbow-colored. The world's palette, bright and dark, fluorescent and incandescent, inspired her. In college, she studied art. She adored Mary Cassatt, the impressionist painter whose portraits of mothers and children simplified a universe that so often felt complicated. Mary Beth raised her three boys and two girls with Otto Rieke in Kansas City before her life's third act - a hunt for everything that's beautiful in the world.
Wherever Mary Beth went, she found community. In trips to Paris, each arrondissement was its own unique playground. In Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where she moved after Kansas City, she made a habit of befriending neighbors and volunteering at the universities where Tom worked - both of which she continued at later stops. In Bloomington, Indiana, she spent countless hours helping maintain the T.C. Steele State Historic Site, which honors the artist who taught students at Indiana University "to see the beautiful in nature and in life." In Bangor, Maine, she urged visitors to "come into l'espace creatif," the makeshift art studio where she painted. While there, she helped establish the Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship at Husson University, which sends students to study around the globe. She wanted others to see the amazing things the world had gifted her. Mary Beth later moved to New Hampshire to be closer to family.
Once, on a whim, she gathered scrap wood and built them a chicken coop. She would make creations out of marzipan that were almost too pretty to eat. Almost. She found another happy place, StoneLedge Stables, which runs nature camps for children and abides by a motto close to Mary Beth's heart: "Connecting hearts and minds in the natural world." Everything about her was natural - the charm, the care, the peace she emanated. If someone was in need, she would show up in a blink - usually wearing Birkenstocks and wool socks, even on the coldest winter days. Mary Beth always urged others to "thank your feet." Otherwise, she said, "you won't get very far in life." Even as cancer tried to slow her down, Mary Beth summoned the energy to pack 25 hours of deeds into a 24-hour day. No one could say for sure where she found this unlimited reservoir of strength. Maybe she saved a little of that white light for herself.
Mary Beth is survived by her husband, Tom Martz of Lebanon, New Hampshire; son, Adam Rieke (Amy) of Naperville, Illinois; daughters, Sara Passan (Jeff) of Kansas City and Catherine Pettus (Jason); grandchildren, Gabriel and Elizabeth Rieke, Jack and Luke Passan, Alice and Jude Pettus; mother, Pauline Markway; siblings, Marc Markway (Betty), Dennis Markway (Pam), Jude Markway (Mary), Donna Bernskoetter (Wayne), Emily Crawford (Gary), Albert Markway (Debbie), Rita Paul and John Markway (Lisa); and dozens of nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her sons, Gabriel and Michael Rieke; father, Marcellus Markway; and brother, Chris Markway.
There will be a private family celebration of love and remembrance in Maine with her husband, children and grandchildren. A celebration of life will be held at a later date at the Bolton Home in Wardsville. If you would like to honor Mary Beth with a Mass, candle-lighting or Rosary, please do so in your own home or parish of choice, or you may donate to your favorite charity, or to Husson University, Advancement Office, 1 College Circle, Bangor ME 04401-in memo line-Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship.
Mary Elizabeth (Mary Beth) Martz, 72, of Lebanon, New Hampshire, passed away on Wednesday, October 21, 2020, surrounded by family, after a seven year battle with breast cancer. Mary Beth was born on July 14, 1948 in Wardsville, a daughter of Marcellus and Pauline (Stegeman) Markway.
Mary Beth attended St. Stanislaus School in Wardsville and was a 1966 graduate of Helias High School. Nobody knew how to provide comfort like Mary Beth Martz. Her voice, tender and soothing, made everything she said sound like a lullaby. Whatever the issue, big or small, she seemed to have the answer, and after providing it, she would punctuate the conversation by saying that she was sending white light. For Mary Beth, there was no greater force than the distillation of all the colors of the rainbow: beautiful, balanced, powerful.
Beloved wife, selfless mother, peerless grandmother, Mary Beth lived a life filled with the things most important to her: family, friends, art and love. Her wanderlust took her around the globe, from the streets of Paris to the woods of Maine to everywhere in between. She sought experiences - not the vapid sort that can saturate days but rich, fulfilling, meaningful ones, to remember, to savor, to cherish. What Mary Beth may not have realized is how essential she was to these experiences. Her ability to be unintentionally hysterical was unmatched. She would utter an off-handed remark that caused ripples of laughter and a minute later drop an observation rich with wisdom. "It's not old," she would say of something that had seen better days, "it's well-loved."
Mary Beth didn't see life through rose-colored glasses. They were rainbow-colored. The world's palette, bright and dark, fluorescent and incandescent, inspired her. In college, she studied art. She adored Mary Cassatt, the impressionist painter whose portraits of mothers and children simplified a universe that so often felt complicated. Mary Beth raised her three boys and two girls with Otto Rieke in Kansas City before her life's third act - a hunt for everything that's beautiful in the world.
Wherever Mary Beth went, she found community. In trips to Paris, each arrondissement was its own unique playground. In Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where she moved after Kansas City, she made a habit of befriending neighbors and volunteering at the universities where Tom worked - both of which she continued at later stops. In Bloomington, Indiana, she spent countless hours helping maintain the T.C. Steele State Historic Site, which honors the artist who taught students at Indiana University "to see the beautiful in nature and in life." In Bangor, Maine, she urged visitors to "come into l'espace creatif," the makeshift art studio where she painted. While there, she helped establish the Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship at Husson University, which sends students to study around the globe. She wanted others to see the amazing things the world had gifted her. Mary Beth later moved to New Hampshire to be closer to family.
Once, on a whim, she gathered scrap wood and built them a chicken coop. She would make creations out of marzipan that were almost too pretty to eat. Almost. She found another happy place, StoneLedge Stables, which runs nature camps for children and abides by a motto close to Mary Beth's heart: "Connecting hearts and minds in the natural world." Everything about her was natural - the charm, the care, the peace she emanated. If someone was in need, she would show up in a blink - usually wearing Birkenstocks and wool socks, even on the coldest winter days. Mary Beth always urged others to "thank your feet." Otherwise, she said, "you won't get very far in life." Even as cancer tried to slow her down, Mary Beth summoned the energy to pack 25 hours of deeds into a 24-hour day. No one could say for sure where she found this unlimited reservoir of strength. Maybe she saved a little of that white light for herself.
Mary Beth is survived by her husband, Tom Martz of Lebanon, New Hampshire; son, Adam Rieke (Amy) of Naperville, Illinois; daughters, Sara Passan (Jeff) of Kansas City and Catherine Pettus (Jason); grandchildren, Gabriel and Elizabeth Rieke, Jack and Luke Passan, Alice and Jude Pettus; mother, Pauline Markway; siblings, Marc Markway (Betty), Dennis Markway (Pam), Jude Markway (Mary), Donna Bernskoetter (Wayne), Emily Crawford (Gary), Albert Markway (Debbie), Rita Paul and John Markway (Lisa); and dozens of nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her sons, Gabriel and Michael Rieke; father, Marcellus Markway; and brother, Chris Markway.
There will be a private family celebration of love and remembrance in Maine with her husband, children and grandchildren. A celebration of life will be held at a later date at the Bolton Home in Wardsville. If you would like to honor Mary Beth with a Mass, candle-lighting or Rosary, please do so in your own home or parish of choice, or you may donate to your favorite charity, or to Husson University, Advancement Office, 1 College Circle, Bangor ME 04401-in memo line-Tom and Mary Martz Endowed Scholarship.
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