Born April 18, 1923 in Chicago, IL, she was the daughter of the late Joseph Dawson and Charlotte Bradley Dawson.
She was educated at Aquinas Dominican Catholic High School. After two years of secretarial school, she went to work at the Naval War College in Chicago where she met her husband Walter, a career Navy man.
Mary and her family lived in St. Mary?s County since 1957 when her late husband, Walter, retired from the Navy and went to work at Patuxent River Naval Air Test Center. They loved living in St. Mary?s County, where they made great friends and were active in the religious, civic, and social activities of the county.
Although Mary was primarily a housewife and mother, she worked for a number of years as office manager for Dr. Lee George, a close friend and dentist in Leonardtown, MD. She was also an active member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, the B.P.O.E. Elks lodge in Lexington Park, MD, and the Navy Wives Club. While her children were attending Catholic schools in the county, Mary was an active parent volunteer.
After Mary and Walter retired in 1980 they purchased a second home in Indialantic, FL and became ?snowbirds? spending the winter in sunny Florida. During their retirement years, Mary pursued her love of travel, and she and her husband took many wonderful vacations around the world. As their health began to fail, Mary and Walter moved to the Hermitage Assisted Living Center in Solomons where Walter died in 2002. They were married for 57 years. Mary stayed on at the Hermitage where she could still be close to many familiar friends.
She is survived by her children, John Popp and his wife, Joyce of Greensboro, NC, Nancy Mercure and her husband, Jim of Reston, VA and Larry Popp and his wife, Louise of Salt Lake City, UT, nine grandchildren, Michael and his wife, Dawn, Kelly and her husband, Joel, Aimee, Ryan, Jeremy, Dan, Amanda, Julia and Lauren, and five great-grandchildren, Adam, Devin, Coreena, Jeremy, and Maria.
In addition to her parents and her husband, Mary is preceded in death by her brother, Joseph Dawson.
The family will receive friends on Monday, August 6, 2007 from 6-8:00 p.m. in the Brinsfield Funeral Home Chapel, Leonardtown, MD. Prayers will be recited at 7:00 p.m. A Funeral service will be conducted on Tuesday, August 7, 2007 at 10:00 a.m. in the funeral home. Interment will follow in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA.
Serving as pallbearers will be John Popp, Larry Popp, Jim Mercure, Michael Popp, Ryan Sides, and Jeremy Sides.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer?s Association, Southern Maryland Office, P.O. Box 1889, LaPlata, MD 20646.
