Mary Mae Kearney

At the request of the family, MASK are REQUIRED!!!

Homegoing Celebration for Mary Mae Cassells Kearney

Family will receive friends on Monday, November 28, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. until time of service at 12:00 p.m. at White's Funeral and Cremation Services, 867 S. James Road, Columbus, OH 43227. Interment: Forestlawn Memorial Estates, 5600 East Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43213. The funeral service will be livestreamed at 12:00 p.m. 

Mary Mae Cassells Kearney, age 101, quietly passed away in her sleep on Saturday, November 19, 2022 with her loving and faithful daughter by her side. She lived a life full of adventures, both good and bad. She was born in Harrisville, Ohio. She preceded in death by her parents, Victor and Annie Cassells, her loving husband James Arnett Kearney of 53 years, her daughters, Aloma F. Kearney Mason and Rita R. Kearney Emmanuel; son-in-law, Winston L. Murray, Jr. M.D., granddaughter, Nena E. Carr Jackson; seven brothers and five sisters.

Mary is survived by her loving family, children, James (Jimmy) Arnett Jacobs, Franklin James (Peggy) Kearney, Linda J. (Richard) Kearney Carr, Larry L. Kearney and Teresa A. Kearney Murray; grandchildren, Marvin S. Kyle, Jr., Yolonda L. Kyle, James E. Mason, Ronald W. Lee, Necolle M. (Brian) Mason Steele, Aneka C. Carr Burton, Winston “W.T." L. Murray, III, Tanya E. Kearney-Johnson, Jessica R. Kearney-Perice, Nicholas "Nick" J. Kearney and Taleetha L. Hawkins and many, many great and greatgreat grandchildren, many nieces, nephews and cousins.

A special acknowledgement to grandchildren, “W.T.", Nicholas "Nick", Yolonda, Domenyk, Marvin and Taleetha for lovingly seeing about their grandmother in various ways as her needs changed.

Also, a special thanks to the beautiful family and friends who continuously called and/or sent uplifting greeting cards and/or sent beautiful flowers year after year to make sure she knew they loved her and thought of her often. They are: Diane “Toddy” Redman, Yvonne Young, Ada Adams, Joe Lewis and Christine Lee. Thank you to Edward, Melanie and Gabrielle Hill for ALWAYS visiting each month. Gabrielle and Ms. Mary shared the same birth date, 90 years apart! Gabrielle loved her so much!

She was a member of New Salem Baptist Church. Her pastor is Dr. Keith A. Troy. He has been her pastor for many, many years. Our family is very grateful to Pastor Troy for having his services on YouTube since the pandemic. It is extremely uplifting to us. Each Sunday, his words of wisdom and encouragement helped us have faith and hope to endure another week of “our new pandemic lifestyle.” Thank You Pastor Troy.

Mary was a beautiful loving Mother, a proud lady whom read her Bible every day. To start with, she read 23rd and 91st Psalms each day. She often said, “Each day, read your Bible. Everything you ever heard of is in it. No matter how many times you read the entire Bible, you will always discover “new things.” She loved to read and research anything that caught her eye. She often said, “Learn something new every day.” She was a fantastic cook. Her peach cobbler was a crowd favorite, hands down! She was the best swimmer in the family. She also enjoyed working word games as well. She always had a great time with her children and grandchildren. They love her very much. Mary will be greatly missed by all who knew her.

Mary was a small business owner. She owned her own restaurant, "The Kearney's Sandwich Shop". In 1984, she retired from the Defense Investigate Security Clearance Office (DISCO). She enjoyed doing top-security background clearance checks on high profiled individuals. For her superior work record, she was awarded with multiple plaques and letters for her contribution to that division of the government.

She eagerly looked forward to traveling with her children, several times each year. Mary was a member of Saponi Nation of Ohio. She was the matriarch, historian and poet. Mary was first publish as a poet at the age of 85. Her poem “We Couldn’t Say” was one of her great poems we so loved. It tells the story of when she found out about our connection to Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. She gave many lectures in several states regarding her 3rd great grandfather, 3rd U.S.A. President Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, his enslaved house servant. As a descendant, she and her family were given lifetime passes to Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, Virginia.

She told her family’s oral history to the curator in Charlottesville, Virginia at the Jefferson Library, The African American Civil War Museum in Washington, D.C., Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, Black History week at Reynoldsburg High School in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, the State of Ohio Office Building during black history month, Martin Luther King branch of the Franklin County Library. She was also very active in the Thomas Woodson Family Reunions. As the family matriarch, historian, descendant of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings.

She had been a historian for the Susan B. Weaver Cancer Ray. She often did various tasks for philanthropist cousin Dorothy Cage Evans.

Due to COVID-19 concerns, regrettable there will not be a repass.

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