Mary Harding, 90, of Andover passed away peacefully Saturday morning, July 3, 2010 in the company of family members.
Born Mary Virginia Rush in Benedicta, ME, where she was organist and pianist for St. Benedict's Catholic Church and valedictorian of her class, she was eldest of the eleven children of Daniel B. and Ora (Theriault) Rush. Mary was a graduate of Madigan Memorial Hospital (Houlton, ME) School of Nursing and worked as a Registered Nurse for Providence (RI) Lying Inn, St. Francis, (Hartford, CT) and Holy Family (Methuen, MA) Hospitals, as well as the Merrimack College Health Center.
In 1942, she married John Cyril Harding of Bangor Maine, a Chief Petty Officer and Aviation Instructor for the U.S. Navy. After the war, they settled in Hartford, CT to raise an eventual nine children. In 1959, the couple and their eight surviving children relocated to Andover, MA where John was employed as a Methods Engineer for Raytheon Missile Systems until his death in 1979.
Mary loved music, loved to sing, loved to dance, and above all loved her children. She was a devoted Catholic and faithful parishioner of St. Augustine Church, Andover for more than fifty years.
Along with J. Anthony “Tony” Clinton of Lawrence, MA, her loving companion of twenty-three years, Mary is survived by her son John C. Jr. and wife Arline (Lunny) Harding of Framingham, MA; son Donald and wife Bonnie (Walker) Harding of Andover, MA; son Michael and wife Joan (McAree) Harding of Methuen, MA; son David of Groveland, MA; daughter Mary Anne and Husband Dennis Richards of Andover, MA; son Timothy of So. Boston, MA; daughter Kathleen and husband Vartan Dirinian of Watertown, MA, son Joseph and wife Norma (Lane) Harding of Chester, NH; brother Richard Rush of Benedicta, ME; sister Leah McKnight of Framingham, MA; sisters Evelyn McLaughlin, Lyn Peters and Donna Puckett of Nashua, NH; sister Jean Crouse of Great Bend, KS; thirteen grandchildren; seventeen great-grandchildren; and joins her sweet little daughter Mary Patricia.
Her Funeral Mass was celebrated in St. Augustine Church, 43 Essex Street, Andover, Thursday, July 8, 2010, at 12:30 PM. Many relatives and friends were in attendance. Calling hours were held in the Burke-Magliozzi Funeral Home, 390 North Main Street, Andover, Wednesday, July 7, 2010, from 4 to 8 PM. Burial was in St. Augustine Cemetery, Andover. In lieu of flowers, donations in Mary's memory may be made to Fr. Ignatius Harding, C/O Peter Harding, 3 Knoll Lane, Rocky Hill, CT 06067.