Mary Weston-Jones

Mary Weston-Jones, 70, wife of the Rev. Dick Weston-Jones, died peacefully at home December 11, 2010, after fighting breast cancer for 13 years. She was an elementary school counselor in Illinois and Florida, and a high school vocational counselor in California. In 1968 she was expelled from her Southern Baptist Church in Starkville, MS for asking the pastor if black people could be invited to worship with them. That led to her becoming UU four years later in State College, PA, where she married Dick. She showed tremendous courage during her illness, which never went into remission; she outlived all predictions. She arranged for infusion therapy at various hospitals as she and Dick traveled widely during the past 12 years. Her last trip was in October to the ocean. She drove the Virginia Beach boardwalk in her power wheelchair and savored her favorite food, deep-fried oysters. She is survived by her husband, Dick, by six children, two foster children and 21 grandchildren.