Mary Beattie

Mary Beattie was a woman of great wisdom, compassion, and graciousness for those around her. She was completely dedicated to both her family and her faith, which was evident by the way she lived her life each and every day. Mary was blessed to share more than 35 years of her life with her true companion with whom she established the family that was her greatest source of pride and joy. She never thought twice about doing what she could to help others as an outpouring of a heart that knew no bounds.

The fifties were a time of great changes that would forever transform the face of our nation. It was during the year 1954 that the United States Supreme Court banned racial segregation in public schools, the revenue for television broadcasters finally surpassed that of radio broadcasters, and the first United States satellite successfully orbited the earth. This was a year of great significance in the family of Harold and Marie (Thompson) Dawson as they welcomed the birth of their daughter, Mary, on February 22nd. Mary was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, as the youngest of three children in her family, which included siblings Sue and Larry. Mary’s father owned a bar and restaurant called Sonny’s in Oshkosh, while her mother was busy tending to the needs of their home and family. As a young girl, Mary learned to appreciate the incredible worth of family as she shared close relationships with her sister and brother. The Dawson family also regularly celebrated the holidays with their extended family.

Throughout her life, Mary always reflected on her childhood in a positive light. She loved the family vacations they took at their cottage in northern Wisconsin, while their hometown of Oshkosh is located near the center region of the state. Mary enjoyed many things that young girls so often do including swimming and dancing among additional activities as well. She attended local schools and was proud to graduate from Oshkosh West High School with honors in 1972.

Life was forever changed for Mary when she made the acquaintance of a young man with whom she would establish the family she treasured. His name was Jerry Beattie, and they met at a party through a mutual friend. After dating for a short time, the couple was married on May 6, 1972. Over the next period of years, they moved around quite a bit while Jerry was in the military. They lived in Massachusetts, Texas, Detroit, and Wisconsin among other locations. Mary worked during this time not only as a homemaker, but also in retail and as a waitress. The couple was blessed with three children together: Jerry, Matthew, and Kelly. Mary took her role as a mother seriously and completely immersed herself into caring for her children. She always had a way of making sure that each of her children knew that they were uniquely loved, although like is so common among mothers, Mary worried way too much. The Beattie family enjoyed spending time together and some of their favorite memories were made taking trips, usually to visit other family members.

Although caring for her family kept her quite busy, Mary enjoyed a variety of other things as well. Her faith was certainly an important cornerstone in her life. Mary and Jerry were members of St. James Catholic Church for 25 years where they were both actively involved. They frequently enjoyed helping out with events such as the fish fry and also at the carnivals. She was individually involved in various programs there, too. When it came to music, Mary’s favorite was anything by “the King” himself, Elvis. She also spent much of her time reading and enjoyed murder mysteries and various books dealing with spirituality. Mary did not like to cook herself, but had a taste for seafood and loved going to Red Lobster as often as she could. She also liked broccoli. Mary had an extensive collection of angels that she acquired over the years, which at last count included more than 200 angels! Later in life, Mary was overjoyed to become a grandmother to five wonderful grandchildren: Matthew, Alexander, Devin, Logan, and Abigail.

There were so many things that made Mary Beattie such a remarkable woman to those who knew her. She was kind and loving, yet could be argumentative and even downright stubborn when it came to matters she felt passionate about. Mary viewed being a mother to be a great blessing, and she treasured the children who have now become her lasting legacy. Although Mary’s family and friends now say goodbye, they will forever cherish the moments they shared with such a remarkable woman. She will be dearly missed.