Mary Tatroe

Mary Estelle Edison Tatroe was a polite and proper bundle of energy, who loved her family and influenced the lives of many. By profession and personal interest, she liked learning—as a teacher, citizen, traveler and nature lover. She conversed easily, worked diligently, and gave her full attention to each person she engaged. She was genuinely interested in the lives of others and empathetic to their concerns. Mary lived her life with dignity and grace, and by her own testimony, had a very good life.

Mary’s story began in 1916, when Americans were hopeful that Woodrow Wilson could keep them out of the war in Europe. While the government maintained its official position of neutrality, the country forged ahead in manufacturing and cultural changes: from assembly lines and faster Model Ts to women’s suffrage and prohibition, from fair labor laws to ragtime bands and silent films.

In the countryside northwest of Grand Rapids, Michigan, one family was awaiting the birth of their first child. Arthur and Marion (Weaver) Edison welcomed Mary Estelle into their lives on August 7, 1916. On their family farm, at Walker and 3 Mile NW, they raised four daughters, surrounded by other members of the Edison family who lived on adjacent properties. Quite naturally, Mary grew up closely bonded to family and the land. She developed a love for the outdoors, whether enjoying birds and animals or doing farm chores and gardening, a passion that remained with her into adulthood.

As attached as she was to the family homestead, Mary was adventuresome as a bright young woman and took advantage of educational opportunities not always pursued by girls of her day. She attended a small one-room schoolhouse, Simon School, but a large high school. After graduating from Union High, she went on to Western Michigan University to earn a degree in elementary education.

In her first year of teaching, Mary took a position in Jackson, Michigan but then moved to Grand Rapids and taught at Sibley School and then Westwood Elementary School. For 44 years, she received children into her kindergarten classroom over a span of three generations, and her influence on hundreds of students was profound. Mary was known for her love of children–from the first day of school when she could comfort their fears to the day she proudly moved them along to the next step of their journey.

Even outside the classroom, Mary displayed keen interest and amazing patience for all children. She was a 4-H leader in Kent County and supported the children’s 4-H Garden at Michigan State University in Lansing and Starr Commonwealth in Albion, Michigan. Over her many years of teaching, Mary chalked up countless conversations with former students and their families and formed lifelong connections within the community. She was a member of Trinity Congregational Church, Alpha Beta Epsilon sorority and a former member of the Woman’s City Club.

One connection with a family friend blossomed into a romantic relationship. Mary’s parents were friends with the Tatroe family, who had a son named Robert. He and Mary dated for a time, including during his military service. When he returned home as a WWII veteran, the two of them were married on February 2, 1946, and Bob went to work with Mary’s father on the family Centennial Farm. Very sadly, after just four years of marriage, Robert died unexpectedly in September of 1949.

As a young widow, Mary remained on the family farm, her home for a total of 84 years. Other than the time she was in university, Mary lived on the Edison family homestead established in 1841, in a home built in 1890 by her grandfather, Milo Edison. In 2000, when Mary moved to Pilgrim Manor, she donated the farm’s centennial home to the city of Walker to be developed as the Edison House museum in Springfield Industrial Park.

Another enduring family landmark was the Edison cottage on Hess Lake, which remains in the family to this day. Most summers of her youth, Mary spent weekends at the cottage, and in later years, she could be found still playing games there with family members. She also enjoyed traveling with family: touring the US and parts of Canada in her youth and Hawaii and the gardens of Scotland and England as an adult.

Well-versed in gardening, Mary began managing the family’s flower business in 1953. The company shipped dahlias all over the world, but even around her own home, Mary grew roses, pansies and peonies on a grand scale. Her love of flowers showed in the beauty of her expertly cultivated gardens.

Needless to say, Mary was a hard worker who lived life fully and never complained. She was caring of the people around her and careful of what had been entrusted to her. She was sociable without wanting to be the center of attention and political without being confrontational. She indulged in reading the newspaper, but otherwise Mary was always on the go and interested in everything around her. Looking back on her life, she would say it was nearly perfect.

Mary, aged 94, passed away on Thursday July 14, 2011 at Pilgrim Manor in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She will be missed by family, friends and numerous former kindergarten students. Her many kindnesses to others will long be remembered.

Mrs. Mary Estelle (Edison) Tatroe is survived by a sister, Judith (Thomas) Paul of Wisconsin Rapids, WI; brother-in-law Russell G. (LouAnn) Mawby of Augusta, MI; nieces Karen (Randy) Willis of Augusta, MI; Mary Jae (Andy) Kleckner of Wisconsin Rapids, WI; Tobianne Hall of Chicago, IL; nephew David Mawby of Edinburg, TX and niece Debra Mawby of Delton, MI as well as many grand nieces and nephews. Private family services were held with interment in Greenwood Cemetery. For those who wish to make a memorial contribution, they may be made to the Pilgrim Manor Foundation, 2000 Leonard NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49505; the Michigan 4-H Foundation (4-H Children’s Garden), 240 Sparta Way, East Lansing, MI 48824; or to a charity of one’s choice.