Mary Odile Hickey

On a sunny August 23rd in 1952, Mary McGrady, born in Chicago, IL, left the sheltered life of 16 years of a Chicago Catholic education (St. Jerome, St. Scholastica Academy, DePaul University) and loving parents Hugh and Ethel, to marry Philip Hickey. On that day, she could not have imagined the impact that she would have on so many people over the next 62 years.

Author Stephen Covey wrote, “To touch the soul of another human being is to walk on holy ground”. A resident of Farmington Hills, Michigan, Mere touched the soul of many as a loving force of compassion, through her work as a grief counselor, rape-victim advocate, mentor to disadvantaged families, and educator at many levels, from young children to engaged couples. When called upon to lead, whether at the North Redford/Detroit Community Organization (“no strip clubs in our neighborhood, thank you!”) or at Farmington Village, she did so with relentless commitment.

Mere’s thirst for knowledge was life-long, taking classes into her 80’s; her zeal for adventure found her even in her 70’s hiking West Coast rocky beaches and hills in Tuscany, and square-dancing in Plains, GA with Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter. The devastating lung disease which took her from us only developed over the last eighteen months, but that did not prevent her from leaping from her wheelchair onto the dance floor at her grandson Jimmy’s wedding in Colorado this past July.

Mere treasured her friends deeply, cherished her years at St. Agatha and St. Alexander’s, and dreamed of the day when women could be made priests in the Catholic Church. She was adored by her family, notably by the spouses of her six children, all of whom called her Mom and considered her Mom.

After they moved to Michigan in 1952, her fifty year marriage to Phil Sr. (died April 7, 2003) yielded seven children - Patty, (died at 17 in 1971), P.J. (Reedy), John (Liz), Jim (Jaye Milley), Cathy (Chris) Gurnee, Tom (Kelly Hawker), Dan (Suzanne Ritz), fourteen grandchildren – Crystal (died at 32 in 2012) Hickey, Hilary (Jacob) Stidham, Melissa (Christian) Toepfner von Scheutz, Maureen (Greg) Heller, McGrady (Pavithra) Hickey, James (Tyaunna) Hickey, Eddie Gurnee, Michael Gurnee, Tommy Hickey, Peter Gurnee, Marcus Gurnee, Megan Hickey, Danny Hickey, Sean Hickey, and four great-granddaughters Ansley, Chloe, Evelyn, and Arya. Mere is also survived by her sister Patricia McGrady, of Arlington, VA.

Visitation will be held on Friday January 2, 2015 from 1:30-9 pm with a Scripture Service and remembrances at 7pm, at the Harry J. Will Funeral Home, 37000 Six Mile Road (east of Newburgh and I-275) in Livonia, Michigan.

Her Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, January 3, 2015 at 10:30 am, with final viewing 10 am, at St. Gerald Catholic Church, 21300 Farmington Road (north of Eight Mile Rd) in Farmington, Michigan.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to:

Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation

www.pulmonaryfibrosis.org

Call to Action

www.cta-usa.org

FirstStep

www.firststep-mi.org

A few weeks before Mary Hickey, known to most as “Mere”, died at the age of 83, she turned to her daughter Cathy and said “Remember now – no regrets!”