Mary Shelley Sisson

Mary was born in Columbus, Ohio and attended the Ohio State University graduating with a degree in Home Economics Education. She married John Richard Sisson and they spent a year in India briefly so that he could finish his PhD research. Upon returning home Mary became deeply involved in California grass roots politics. She taught home economics for several years before switching to a career in administrative budget working for the LAPD, LA City Administrative Office and ultimately the LA Dept. of Water and Power. Mary divorced in 1974 and remained single, moving to a home in the CA mountains upon retirement where she formed a homeowners association to pave their road and continued to serve as an active member of the association for 13 years. Mary’s only child, John Charles Sisson was an Assistant Professor of Molecular Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of TX at Austin, and upon the birth of her only grandchild, Oliver Elias Sisson she relocated to Austin.

An avid Catholic, Mary started a support group for divorced and widowed Catholics in 1980 and remained active in church activities throughout her life, most recently at the St. Louis King of France Catholic Church. In her leisure time she trapped and cared for neighborhood feral cats, read mysteries, watched TV, and enjoyed jigsaw puzzles and knitting. She had a passion for genealogy research and long driving “road trips” or train journeys to visit family, but she loved being a grandmother more than anything else. Mary will be laid to rest at the Austin Memorial Park Cemetery with her son who preceded her in death. Mary is survived by her daughter-in-law Ophelia Papoulas and her grandson Oliver.