Mary F. Lyons

Mary Florence Trotman Lyons was born in Baltimore, Maryland on January 28, 1913, the same day as her sister, Mary Halle. For this reason, Mary chose to celebrate her birthday on February 28. The third daughter born to Albert Trotman and Maria Holmes, Mary was a welcome addition to a family that passed to each generation the gift of love and the importance of family. On Sunday, June 13, 2004 at 11:20 a.m., Mary answered God’s call and upon the wings of God’s angels was placed at His feet.As a young girl in the early 1920’s Mary was able to attend Baltimore City Public Schools. She began her work experience as a “domestic” at a young age and was a good and faithful worker until she became employed atLutheran Hospital, where she continued her tradition as a hard working employee for fifteen years. At the age of twelve, Mary’s father took Mary to a predominantly white church in Baltimore City, where she was baptized (sprinkled) in the Methodist faith. As she grew older, Mary attended many churches to include Whitestone Baptist, John Wesley, Bethel AME and Fulton Baptist. Although Mary never joined a church, it did not mean that she did not honor God and praise Jesus Christ, because she knew Jesus was her Lord and SaviourMary was a very direct person. She had many friends and was very well liked, respected and admired, mostly because when she spoke, everyone listened because they knew that what she said would be the truth. Mary enjoyed reciting the 23rd Psalm but was always quick to tell you the words in the 14th Chapter of the Gospel of John: “In my Father’s House are many mansions…”In the early 1940’s Mary met Richard Howard Lyons, a longshoreman whom she dated whenever he was in port. In November of 1955, after a lengthy courtship, Mary and Richard were married and remained happily married until Richard’s death on March 31, 1988. Their union was blessed with three children: Ronald, who preceded Mary in death, Eloise and Debbie.Mary loved her family and always wanted to be surrounded by her immediate family as well as her extended family. She was always present for family dinners and weddings, as she loved to eat and was always the perfect example of a true Christian lady. Mary and her former co-worker and constant friend, Lillian Johnson, traveled extensively during their lives, but Mary was always partial to visiting Atlantic City and New York.An excellent mentor, a loving mother, a faithful aunt and a true friend, Mary leaves to mourn her death and cherish her memory her two loving daughters, Eloise and Debbie, two sons-in-law, John Demory and Michael Smith, Sr.; eight grandchildren: Tara, Maria, Danielle, David, Marcus, Michael, Jr., Kimberlyn and Kelly; seven great grandchildren: Solomon, Tyrease, Tiffany, Sade’, Alisha, Dawn Bria and Isaiah; two great, great grandchildren, Delmarco and Kaiyon and a host of nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews, cousins and her long time friend, Lillian Johnson.Our Angel We watched you grow weaker in body, not soul,For your spirit was strong, even as you grew old.Your smile still radiant, your eyes with their twinkle,Your face life an angel, that held not a wrinkle.You knew it was time to go home to the Master,So you comforted each of us and prayed to go faster.As we watched you greet His Angels with love,You extended your arms and flew off like a dove.As you left not a word were you able to say,But you sang songs of praise, when you met Him that day.Each one of us will follow, we just don’t know whenWhat a blessing, “Hallelujah” when we see you again.To God Be the Glory!LovinglyThe FamilyDedicated to Grandma MaryAn Angel from Above(written by Sade)It’s hard to say goodbye to you,But we know you are in a better place.No more pain and hurt,Instead there will be joy and God’s sufficient grace.God has opened the gates for you because,He chose to take you home.He will always protect you, And you will never be alone.Even though you are gone away:We will always miss your face, And in our hearts you will always stay.You gave us a legacy of love—You taught us to respect, now its time for you to rest,Thank you for being the best!With Love, Sade' & ReaseyA Poem from Our HeartDedicated to Grandma MaryThere are not enough word to express how we feelAbout the things you always did for us,You opened our hearts so we could loveThen opened your arms to share our hugs.Now that you are gone, we feel so sad,The thought of your leaving makes us hurt real bad.We loved you so much, and we hope you know,You were always there watching us grow.You were special and filled with much love, And we know you are looking down on us from above.Thank you for being a mother, grandmother and friend, Your memory will always be in our hearts.We love you, and we’ll miss you very much.Tiffany, Kaiyon, and Delmarco

Tributes

Mary F. Lyons

January 28, 1913 - June 13, 2004