Mary Helen Hutton Doran

Mary Helen Doran, age 93, passed away peacefully on May 31, 2017. Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, June 10, 2017 at 10 am at Christ the King Church, 8510 Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO with burial at Calvary Cemetery following the mass.

Visitation will be held on Friday, June 9, 2017 from 6-8 pm at McGilley State Line Chapel, 12301 State Line Rd., Kansas City, MO, with the Rosary prayed at 7:00 pm that evening.

Mary Helen was born in Electra, Texas to A.G. and Florence Hutton. During World War II she worked as secretary and staff aide at the USO Club which served the US Army personnel at Camp Howze in Gainesville, Texas. She attended St. Mary’s High School in Gainesville and earned a scholarship to Our Lady of Victory for two years and later attended and graduated from Webster College (now Webster University).

She worked for Braniff Airways in Dallas for three years before her marriage to Tom Doran in 1951. Since she loved to travel she took advantage of every available Braniff pass. Five dollars meant a round-trip to Havana, Cuba. Fifteen dollars would take her to South America, where her Spanish fluency opened many doors.

For over 20 years she worked as secretary for various temporary services and enjoyed the challenge and variety of each assignment. Through the years she did volunteer work at church, school and hospital and worked with Cub Scouts, Brownies, Girl Scouts, the Western Hills Homes Association and the Genealogy Society. Her husband Tom accompanied Mary Helen on genealogy trips to track down records of their ancestors at churches, graveyards and county courthouses.

Mary Helen was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, brothers Bob and Tom Hutton and sister Jean Bach. She is survived by her sisters Margaret Hutton of Farmington, MO and Virginia Alloway of San Antonio, Texas and her four children, Kathleen Doran-Norton (Alan), Tim Doran (Judy), Peggy Doran and Pat Doran (Kim), seven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

She was a parishioner of Christ the King for over 50 years and was a member of the Auxiliary at St. Joseph Hospital. For a number of years she and Tom square danced with the Sunflower Squares and she was a member of the Las Charlitas Spanish Club. Tom and Mary Helen enjoyed trips to Ireland, and she visited all 50 states. Because of her Spanish language skills, a waiter in Spain did not believe Mary Helen was from the United States. When Tom offered that she was instead from Texas, that explanation was apparently sufficient. Mary Helen enjoyed planning adventures, whether touring national parks with the family on summer camping trips or taking Tom on a banana boat through the Panama Canal.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the food pantry at Christ the King Church. Please share a memory or offer condolences at www.mcgilleystatelinechapel.com.