Mary Elaine Decker

Mary Elaine Decker was born on February 28, 1932 to Harley and Louella Utter in Dillsboro, Indiana. She was the fifth child of what would become ten children for the Utter family. She graduated from Dillsboro High School in 1950 and a few years later moved across the state to Terre Haute, where she worked for Eastern Trucking. It was there that she met the man who would become her husband for the rest of their lives together.

Mary worked with a cousin of Chuck Decker's and she set them up to meet each other at a dance. On one of their first dates, Chuck asked Mary to go for a Sunday drive. He then drove across the state line into Illinois and didn't really say where they were going. She was a bit worried at that point, but It turned out okay in the end because he took her to dinner and dancing. They fell in love and got married on July 31, 1960. They had 53 happy years together and continued to love dancing.

In the beginning, they lived in North Terre Haute but soon moved to New Goshen to be closer to Chuck's Barber Shop and his family. In 1963 they adopted Mary Jane and in 1964 they adopted Charles Michael. After a few years, the family built and ran the Decker's Dairy Bar in New Goshen- with Mary and other hired teenagers working there while Chuck continued to be the barber for the town. After a few years, they sold the Dairy Bar. Chuck told Mary she was smart enough to go to college, so she enrolled at Indiana State University and proceeded to get her Bachelor's Degree in Secondary Education. She taught at Turkey Run High School for a year after graduation.

In 1976 the family decided to move to Mesa, Arizona. Mary's sister, Scharline and her family lived there as well. Mary worked first at Sears, but was hired to teach English at the new high school, Mountain View, in 1978. She continued in this career until her retirement in 1998. She made many friends and enjoyed teaching the students. She was a dedicated teacher. After retirement, she and Chuck spent much of their time at their home in the cool pines of Heber, Arizona where they had built a log house.

Mary's faith in God was important to her and she passed that along to her family. She was a member of Emmanuel United Methodist Church in West Terre Haute, Indiana. When the family moved to Mesa they joined Velda Rose United Methodist Church and when they moved to Gilbert they joined Gilbert First United Methodist Church. Mary was always a member of the church choirs, the UMW, and at times a Sunday School teacher. Mary loved to play the piano and sing the old-timey hymns. As a teenager, she and her sisters travelled to other nearby churches to sing.

Since Chuck's passing in 2013, Mary lived in assisted living at LivGenerations at Agritopia in Gilbert. She is well known there for her cheerfulness, sense of humor, her love of all things sparkly, sing-alongs and dancing. She never missed dessert and even had a special dish named after her: The Mary Decker- vanilla ice cream with caramel topping and nuts.

Mary was predeceased by her husband Chuck; great grandson Callen Ray; her parents Harley and Louella; siblings Norman, Wayne, Jim, Genieve, Nell, Scharline and Jerry. She is survived by brothers John (Marie) Utter and Steve (Kathy) Utter; many nieces and nephews; children Jane (Glen) Messacar and Mike (Laurie) Decker; grandchildren Michael (Devon) Decker, Jordan (Mike) Rogatchev, Hayden (Marcia) Messacar, and Christopher (Andrea) Decker; and ten great grandchildren: Clayton Decker; Millie, Charlotte and Lucy Rogatchev; Leah, Ellie and Weston Messacar; and Christian, Aria and Ella Decker.

Memorial service for Mary will be Saturday, September 24, 2022 at 11:00 with a small reception following. The service will be held at Gilbert First United Methodist Church 331 S. Cooper Road, Gilbert, AZ 85233. Flowers may be sent to the church, or in lieu of flowers, donations to Hospice of the Valley may be made.