Mary Ann Shokes

Mary Ann Shokes, 83, widow of The Rev. Theodore (Ted) Wilson Shokes, died in Lansing, MI, February 5, 2014. She married Ted in Charleston, SC, in 1948 when she was 18. She had completed a year in the College of Charleston as a psychology major. The couple moved to Boston in 1960, where Ted attended Tufts Theological Seminary to become a UU minister. They reared two sons and she partnered with her husband to support his ministry. This work would define her life until 1971, when Ted died in Hinsdale, IL. Mary Ann went into in a deep depression and people feared the worst. She surprised everyone by rejoining life fully in the mid-1970s in Lansing, MI. She returned to college, received an AA in social work, and later worked at Michigan National Bank in Lansing before retiring in the late 1980s.

In the mid-2000s, Mary Ann was in a Lansing hospital on life support, with EEGs showing minimal brain activity. Her sons were advised she would never regain consciousness. While her younger son was visiting her and talking with her personal aide about her condition, the aide began sobbing. When her son looked over at his mother, she was smiling back at him. A few months later, she was living independently. She had surprised everyone again by making a full recovery.

She will be remembered for her wisdom, her perseverance, but most of all for her kindness.

Mary Ann is survived by her two sons, Ted (Jr.) and Doug, and by two grandchildren. Condolences may go to the family through Estes-Leadley funeral home: http://estesleadley.com.