Mary Jean Hrysko McCarthy
April 22, 1914 - July 14, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009 12:45 AM PDT
Meridian
Mary Jean McCarthy passed away Tuesday afternoon, July 14, 2009, at a Meridian care center, after living a full and wonderful 95 years. A viewing for family and friends will be from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 21, 2009, at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Fruitland. A vigil service will follow at 7 p.m. A funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 22, 2009, at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Fruitland. Interment will follow at Park View Cemetery, New Plymouth.
Condolences may be made to the family at
www.shaffer-jensenchapel.com.
Born to Anthony and Josephine (Repecki) Hrysko (Hryszko) on April 22, 1914, in Throop (Scranton), Pa., Mom was one of 10 children in the Hrysko family. The Hryskos had emigrated from Poland to northeast Pennsylvania in the late 19th century and settled in the coal mining region to forge a new life. Her seven brothers and three sisters made for a lively family atmosphere. Family life was centered around the coal mines, the Polish-American community and a strong bond with the Catholic Church. She developed a close relationship with her older sister, Ann, and a younger brother, Stanley, that lasted throughout their lives despite their living thousands of miles apart. As a young girl, Mom worked in a silk mill for 10 cents a day and, after one year of high school, did hired house work from age 16 to 22. She worked in a bakery and tea room for $16 a week. Baking/cooking became a passion/livelihood for her later on in life.
Her life changed dramatically as WWII began in the 1940s. Mom enlisted in the Woman’s Army Corps, trained to be a cook and became a mess sergeant stationed in Des Moines, Iowa. On a bus ride out to Portland, Ore., to visit relatives, Mom met Patrick Joseph (Joe) McCarthy in Omaha, Neb., when Dad noticed Mom was wearing a blessed virgin ring. Dad was serving in the Signal Corps stationed in Omaha and was returning west to visit his uncle, Mike O’Leary, in Fruitland. Either Dad’s loquacious Irish personality or Mom’s strong, independent Polish personality, or a combination of both, fostered a lifelong romance that began with marriage in 1943 in San Francisco, Calif. Mom left the service in 1945 as the war was ending and settled in Fruitland to start a family.
Mom and Dad raised the family in the peaceful and rural atmosphere of 1950s/60s Fruitland. Four sons were born: Patrick John (1945), John (1946 — died as a baby), Timothy Michael (1947) and Jerald Anthony (1949). Mom centered her life on raising us boys. Oh my, what a baker and cook she became! Her cookies, rolls, bread and pastries were to die for! She became active in the Catholic Church (St. Aloysius parish in New Plymouth). Mom and Dad never owned a car throughout their lives, so the family stayed close to home, walked and bicycled to work and play. Mom took a job with the Fruitland School District as a lunch room baker and cook and later worked for the Charolais restaurant and Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario, Ore., oftentimes walking to and from work. We lost Dad to cancer in 1976, and Mom continued to work into her 70s.
In retirement, Mom remained active. Many thanks to the Payette County Senior Citizens and their activities and the New Plymouth American Legion Auxiliary and Post for their involvement with mother. She continued to bake and share wonderful bread and pastries. She was blessed to spend time with her two grandchildren, Erin and James McCarthy, and her three step-grandchildren, Becca Harris Charrier, Tracy Harris Sandercock and Andrea Harris. A stroke in 1998 took away part of her mental acuity but not her spirit and personality. Throughout her life, Mom simply devoted her life both to other people and to many organizations. During most of the last 12 years of her life, Mom lived with her son Tim and his family. We were truly blessed to share our lives and home with Mom and will dearly miss her. We wish to thank the Cottages Assisted Living of Meridian, especially Bonnie, Linda and Wendy, and Meridian Care and Life Center for providing a quality life in the last few years.
Mom was preceded in death by her parents, Anthony and Josephine; all her brothers and sisters; and infant baby, John. She is survived by her three sons, Tim (Jana, with stepdaughters, Becca Charrier, Tracy Sandercock and Andrea Harris), of Meridian, Jerry (Rhonda, with grandchildren, James and Erin), of Clinton, Mont., and Patrick, of Boise.
In lieu of flowers and gifts, if you wish to donate in memory of Mom, please consider the American Cancer Society, c/o Shaffer-Jensen Memory Chapel, P.O. Box 730, Payette, ID 83661.
In closing, Mom, you have entered into a new phase of your life, one in which you will continue to watch over us and guide us by your example in life. May you rest in peace in God’s grace.
