Mary Jo Berry Mason

Mary Jo Berry Mason
Fort Necessity, LA
Mulhearn Funeral Home
Winnsboro, LA
Funeral Services for Mrs. Mary Jo Berry Mason, 75, of Fort Necessity will be held at 10:30 AM, Saturday, August 1, 2009 in the chapel of Mulhearn Funeral Home in Winnsboro, LA with Reverends Lillard Bevill, Rex Barker, and Howard Childs officiating. Burial is at the historic Boeuf Prairie Methodist Church Cemetery in Fort Necessity under the direction of Mulhearn Funeral Home in Winnsboro, LA. Visitation is from 5:30 to 8:00pm on Friday, July 31.
Mary Jo was born November 19, 1933 in Texarkana, Texas and spent her childhood and teenage years in Monroe, LA; she was a resident of Fort Necessity, LA for 53 years. She passed away peacefully at her daughter’s home in Austin, Texas on July 28, 2009, finally joining her beloved husband of 46 years, Cecil, who passed away earlier this year in March. Also preceding her in death are her parents, Bertha and Alvin Berry; 2 brothers, Ray Berry and Charles Berry; and 2 sisters, Bobbie Brantley, and Sue Berry. She is survived by her daughter, Nona Mason Mendez and son-in-law, Daniel Mendez of Austin, Texas; 1 grandson, Chris Janes, who is a graduate student at Texas A&M; 2 sisters, Lois Wilkinson of Jacksonville, Arkansas and Nona Cowan of West Monroe, LA; 1 brother, Carl Berry of Columbia, Missouri, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
After graduating from Ouachita High School, Mary Jo attended Louisiana College earning a degree in English. In 1956, she accepted a position as an English teacher at Fort Necessity High School and moved to the Boeuf Prairie community, where she met her future husband, Cecil. During the earlier years of her teaching career she continued her education, obtaining her Master Degree, plus 30 hours. Mary Jo was a dedicated teacher and principal, and she worked very hard to achieve her own academic success while striving to instill the same desire to excel in her students. After retiring as principal, she returned to her true love, teaching. She taught kindergarten and junior high after her “retirement”. Her pride in and love of her former pupils and fellow faculty members shone through in the many stories she told of her years as a teacher and principal at Fort Necessity High School. One of her great joys was to visit with past co-workers and students, rehashing the many student pranks, class trip shenanigans, and classroom mischief she dealt with throughout her career. It was so rewarding for Mary Jo to hear from her former students about how she had touched and changed their lives throughout the years. One former student was just quoted as saying, “She was part of the strand in the net that kept us all safe as kids.” Throughout recent years, many of her past students told her that without her influence, they would not have grown into the adults that they are today.
Mary Jo was an avid seamstress and enjoyed countless hours creating beautiful works of art that she freely shared with friends and family. In addition to sewing, she was skilled in handcrafts such as needlepoint, cross stitch, and embroidery both by hand and on her sewing machine. Fortunate was the new bride, expectant mother, or close friend who received one of Mary Jo’s embroidered tea towels or baby blankets. Her last shopping trip was to the fabric store to buy more thread for her latest project.
Mary Jo’s greatest joy of all was the vast collection of family and friends that enriched her life on a daily basis. She and Cecil worked hard, lived simply, and sought to better not only their family’s future but their community’s as well. Mary Jo was both proud and humble to be a part of the rich history of the Berry and Mason families in northern Louisiana and the Boeuf Prairie community.
Serving as pallbearers are Daniel Mendez, Andy Keene, Michael Bryan, Ricky Smith, Ken Mason, Eddie Ray Bryan; honorary pallbearers are Ray Bryan, Joe Tarver, Charles Winters, Jimmy Henderson, Faydette Moore, and Jimbo Colvin.
The family would like to thank to following: Dr. Ron Hammett and the staff at Glenwood Pulmonary Specialists, Family Life Home Health, Hospice TLC, Dr. James Potts and the rehab staff at Glenwood Regional Medical Center, Dr. Shaun Chen and the staff at Adult Care of Austin, Hospice of Austin, Austin Home Health, and the numerous friends and family members that have provided so much love and support over the last several months. Memorial donations can be made to the Boeuf Prairie Methodist Church, Mary Jo and Cecil Mason Memorial Fund, c/o of James Henderson, 110 Bryan Lane, Winnsboro, LA 71295.