Mary D. Crossman

Born and raised in Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York, Mary was the youngest of ten children of Maria and Nicola DeJesu, immigrants from Italy. There were more than twenty years between Mary and her oldest brother, so many of her nieces and nephews were her contemporaries. Her home at 95 Ivy Street in Oyster Bay was the center of the family. Many members of the extended family lived there at different times, and the home remained in the family for decades.

In 1952, Mary married William W. Crossman and they had three children of their own. Within a few years, William was transferred to sunny southern California and for the first time, Mary left the security of friends and family she had known her whole life. Mary thrived in this new environment. The neighborhood was friendly and the Crossman family fit right in creating wonderful memories. When all their children were in school, she volunteered at the City of Hope, a cancer hospital and a local elementary school. Just short of a decade later, the family moved back east where Mary spent the rest of her life.

Mary enjoyed being a homemaker and took great pride in her home and children. She was most content when cleaning, organizing and working on projects. She loved to sew and made curtains and clothes for herself and her daughter and later made dolls for her granddaughters. She enrolled in lessons in furniture refinishing, taking a dilapidated desk and turning it into a piece of beauty smooth as satin. Setting up a work area in her basement, she continued to refinish and make beautiful many more pieces that others would have tossed. She was spry and youthful well into her eighties, joining her New Canaan coffee klatch early most mornings for over 40 years, wintering in Florida and vacationing on Lake Champlain with her family and friends. Debilitating back pain and macular degeneration finally slowed her down.

Mary was preceded in death by her husband William W. Crossman in 2009. She is survived by her three children, William Jr., Lindsay, and Michael Crossman; her four grandchildren, Jesse and Dylan Crossman, Brittney Borjeson, and Kelsey Johndrow; and her great grandson, Kessler Crossman. In addition, she leaves behind many, many nieces and nephews of multiple generations.

There will be a short graveyard service at Saint John’s Memorial Cemetery, Syosset, NY on Saturday, June 3, 2023 at 10:30 am. Following the service, there will be a celebration of Mary’s Life and a remembrance of her husband Bill’s life at Wall’s Wharf in Bayville, NY from 12:30 to 4:30.

For those who wish to attend Mary Crossman’s Celebration of Life and Bill Crossman’s Remembrance virtually June 3rd at 2:00 pm, please copy and paste the link below into your browser, or click on "Livestream" under the service section of Mary's memorial page.

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82416173892?pwd=TmZlUEswZXBWWkoyUnZMb2YrN2swQT09

Please contact the Crossman family for the passcode.