BOYCE, Mary
Mary Louise Wegner Boyce was born May 1st, 1938 in Oklahoma City, OK, the second of four children of William (Bill) Michael Wegner and Josephine Louise Hentzen.
She attended Sacred Heart Elementary School and graduated from Mount Saint Mary’s High School in 1956. She completed nurse’s training in 1959 at St. Anthony School of Nursing in Oklahoma City and then joined the Order of St. Frances in Maryville, MO where she became Sr. Bridget. She worked as a nurse until 1970 at St. Anthony’s hospital. She taught herself guitar and enjoyed sharing music with her friends and colleagues. After leaving the order in 1970, she moved to Dallas, Texas and attended college at Texas Woman’s University, completing a Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy.
Mary met her husband-to-be, James Elic Boyce in 1972, and they were married on February 24, 1973 at Holy Trinity Church in Dallas, Texas.. Their only child, Emily, was born in October 1974. She worked as a stay-at-home mom until 1986 when she took a job as the secretary at Saint Patrick’s Elementary School in Dallas. She worked there until 2002 when she retired.
Mary and her husband traveled frequently around the United States, especially throughout the South. They loved visiting historical sites, museums and botanical gardens. She had season tickets to the Dallas opera for more than 15 years, often attending with friends and family. She loved working with her hands, sewing and making crafts of all kinds. She made baskets, jewelry and pottery, most of her own dresses, as well as dresses for her friends. She frequently sold the fruits of her labor at shows throughout Texas. She took a great interest in the history of her family and assembled an extensive collection of family photos, and biographical information dating back to the 1800s. From these she created beautiful genealogical collections that she shared with her relatives.
In 2017 she and her husband moved to Orchard Park, NY, a suburb of Buffalo, to live with their daughter Emily. The last six years of her life were filled with audio books, walking at the mall, collecting pictures of nature, caramel macchiatos, sudoku puzzles, playing games with her husband, keeping in touch with her many friends and relatives around the country, and trips around the Northeastern US and Canada.
Mary passed away in Buffalo, New York on February 24, 2023 at Mercy Hospital. She is survived by her beloved husband James, daughter Emily, her sister Shirley, nephews David and Joseph, and nieces Carol, Dianne, and Bridget.