Mary Ann Neary was born in 1953, one of five children of Bernard and Betty Neary. After a childhood in Port Credit and Toronto, she spent her teens in Victoria, then moved permanently back to Toronto in 1971. As the youngest child, she learned early to carve out a place for herself at noisy and lively family dinners and developed her ability to express and defend her opinions with vigour – a skill that served her well in her career as a health professional and an advocate for cycling infrastructure in the city.
Mary Ann had a varied early career, including two years at the Banff Centre studying Stage Management and a year in Japan teaching English. She completed a linguistics degree at University of Toronto and a Masters in Speech Language Pathology from McGill. Putting her academic studies into practice, she worked as a speech pathologist at Riverdale Hospital and St. Michaels before joining the University Health Network at Toronto Western. She went on to complete a Masters in Health Studies in 2011, while working full-time. She was the Clinical Director of Neuroscience Critical Care (2005-2012), and then Senior Clinical Director of Surgical Services until her retirement in 2019. Mary Ann was recognized by her colleagues for her passion, her organizational skills, her leadership, and as always willing to support the next generation through mentorship. Further details of her professional life can be found at Saying goodbye to 30-year veteran Mary Ann Neary (uhn.ca).
Mary Ann commuted to work for many years by bicycle and was a leading advocate for cycling and road safety in Toronto. She was an active participant in Bells on Danforth, the fearless leader of the 32 Spokes cycling advocacy group in east Toronto, and was a founding member of Toronto Community Bikeways, a group holding Toronto City Council accountable for delivering cycling infrastructure. Toronto is a better city, and its streets are safer because of Mary Ann.
Mary Ann was an avid recreational cyclist, organizing regular rides with her local group, Canardly Cycle, and excursions to international destinations like Italy and Spain. For 16 years Mary Ann participated in The Ride to Conquer Cancer with Team Surge On, fundraising thousands of dollars for cancer research. In the winter months, she didn’t let the weather deter her, and racked up countless kilometres on her indoor cycling setup.
Mary Ann was married to Peter Avery from 1983 to 2007. She was a beloved sister to her three surviving brothers, Michael (Maureen Neary), Bern (Ruth Gaskill), and Kevin (Kathryn Bridge); her pre-deceased sister, Sharon; and a devoted aunt to six nieces and nephews, Meghan, Emma, Bradley, Brendan, Jack, and Clare, and three great-nieces and nephews, Beatrice, Callum, and Xavier, all of whom will miss her greatly. A bright light has sadly gone out in many people’s lives.
Mary Ann passed away unexpectedly but peacefully in her sleep on May 12th, 2024.
In lieu of flowers you can donate in Mary's memory to
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