Mary E. Perry
March 17, 1931 – September 6, 2025
Mary E. Perry, 94
St. Joseph
March 17, 1931 – September 6, 2025
Mary Ellen Perry, age 94, of St. Joseph, Mn. passed away on Saturday, September 6, 2025 at Serenity Place on 7th, in St. Joseph.
A Memorial Service celebrating Mary’s life will be held at 2:00 PM on Saturday, September 27, 2025 at Serenity Place on 7th, 329 7th Ave SE, St. Joseph, MN. Arrangements are with Benson Funeral Home, St. Cloud.
Mary was born on March 17, 1931 in Wolbach, NE to Fred and Verda (Caudle) McCormick. She moved from Nebraska to California at a young age after her family was forced to sell their farm during the Great Depression. After graduating High School, she worked for 2 years as a secretary at the Modesto Bee Newspaper. She then moved to Portland, OR where she met George D. Perry, Jr. She and George were married in 1952 in Modesto, CA. Mary worked for many years as a secretary for a plastics company, where she was known for her efficiency and attention to detail. She had a wonderful sense of humor and was a joy to be around. She was also a talented seamstress, who often made most of her children’s clothes and she was a wonderful cook who made delicious fried chicken. Mary was a kind, loving, and generous person who will be remembered for her love of music (especially gospel music), love of singing, and for her strong Christian Faith, which she was willing to share with anyone who was interested. She felt her only reason to be here, after George passed away, was to be an instrument of Jesus Christ to her children and their families. She was loved by the residents and staff at the retirement home where she was living and was a unique individual, a good and decent person, a Republican who had a sense of humor, and was a bright light in the lives of all who knew her.
Mary is survived by her daughters, Diane (Rex) Tucker of St. Joseph, Kathleen (Jeff) Buchanan of Hanover Park, IL, and Kelly (Paul) Besendorf of Danube, MN; 7 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, and one great-great-granddaughter; she is also survived by one sister Joan Reed.
She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, 2 brothers, and 5 sisters.