Mary Hurst

Mary Elizabeth Palm Hurst passed away on August 12, 2014. Mary was born September 25, 1922, in Austin, the daughter of Edward Joel Palm of Austin and Martha Meachum Palm, originally of Anderson, Texas. She attended public schools in Austin and Huntsville and graduated from the University of Texas with a B.B.A. degree in 1944. She was married to John Kennard Hurst on October 11, 1946 until his death on January 3, 2005.

Like so many of her generation, she learned the necessity for self-reliance, resourcefulness, and kindness to others from earliest days when the hardships of the Great Depression and later the war years impacted the lives of all around her.

She was determined that her children have every opportunity within their imaginations, and she was devoted to their many and varied interests as they grew up in Austin. She was active in a wide range of their activities, from Scouts and sports to dance and music. She and Jack never had any doubt as to the primary importance of academics. They were lifelong supporters of education in many arenas.

She was a member of the Junior Helping Hand Society, the Austin Woman's Club, the Women's Symphony League, and the Thankful Hubbard Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She and Jack and a circle of devoted friends met weekly for over thirty years for casual Sunday night supper out followed by desert and coffee in each others' homes.

As her children launched lives and careers of their own, she embarked on a remarkable second act as a restorer of old houses. Her lifelong interest in structures and housing design stood her in good stead as she undertook the conversion of family Victorian homes into commercial office space. The Heritage Society of Austin honored her with Historic Preservation Awards in 1988 for her rehabilitation of the Edward Joel Palm House at 712 W. 14th Street and in 1989 for her rehabilitation of the Fischer Palm Hurst House at 708 W. 10th St. Her old houses were a source of great contentment and a quiet sense of accomplishment for her over the years.

Mary was predeceased by her husband, J. K. Hurst, her sister, Martha P. Cannon, and the first cousins with whom she was raised, W. W. Meachum, III, and Zoleta M. Courtney. She is survived by her sons, Tom Hurst of Austin, and Edward P. Hurst, M.D. and wife Denise Hurst of Heath, Texas; her daughters, Betty Hurst of Austin, and Sharon Hurst Hibbert and husband James E. Hibbert, Sr. of Houston; and her five grandchildren, James E. Hibbert, Jr., John Edward Hibbert, and Clarkson P. Hibbert, all of Houston, and Brenna K. Hurst and Eric A. Hurst, of Heath.

The family will receive callers from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 16, 2014 at the Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home in Austin, 3125 N. Lamar Boulevard. A memorial service will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that any memorials be made to the Helping Hand Home for Children Foundation, P.O. Box 4185, Austin, Texas 78765; the Austin History Center, P.O. Box 2287, Austin, Texas 78768; or the First United Methodist Church of Anderson, Texas, P.O. Box 462, Anderson, Texas 77830.