Mary Ralston
1922-2019
Mary Katherine (Marvin) Ralston of Fredericton,
wife of the late J. William (Bill) Ralston, passed away at the DECH on
November 29, 2019, following a brief illness. Born in Dartmouth, NS,
on July 13, 1922, she was the daughter of Roderick and Chadwick
(MacCarthy) Marvin.
Mary spent her early years in and around Dartmouth and
Halifax. She attended Mount Saint Vincent University during the war
years, where she made many lifelong friendships. Immediately after the
Second World War, she married Bill following his release from a
prisoner of war camp in Germany. After Bill elected to stay in the
Royal Canadian Air Force, they spent the next 18 years living on
various air force bases in Ontario, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick,
while their family grew to four children. But they always found time
every year to enjoy the Ralston family cottage in St. Andrews,
NB.
When Bill retired from the RCAF in the early 1960s, the
family settled in Fredericton, where their children grew up and
attended university. Mary also found time during this period to work
in the President’s and Development offices at UNB, and also
earned her realtor’s licence with Gardiner Realty. Upon
Bill’s second retirement, from the NB Liquor Commission,
they spent the next two decades splitting their time between winters
in Florida and summers in St. Andrews. Following Bill’s
passing in 1999, Mary returned to Fredericton, where she again made
many new friends, and was particularly fortunate to meet her close
friend Dow Johnston. Wherever she was, Mary loved to entertain, and
spent many an enjoyable evening with a long list of friends and
family.
She is survived by her children, Mary Jane Masse (Yvan) of
Welland, ON, Patty Thomas (Milt) of Fredericton, Bill
Ralston of Ottawa and John Ralston (Karen) of Toronto; her special
companion, Dow Johnston of Fredericton; seven grandchildren, Nicolas
Masse of Cambridge, Mass., Karina Holder (Jordan) of Ottawa, Rebecca
Gamble (Tony) of Quispamsis, NB, Kate Thomas (Matt McCoy) of
Fredericton, Maggie Ryan (Eric) of Fredericton, Calum Ralston of
Toronto and Stuart Ralston of Toronto; five great-grandchildren, Nick,
Lily and Sophie Gamble of Quispamsis, NB, and Oliver and Vivienne
Holder of Ottawa; and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Besides her
husband and parents, Mary was predeceased by her brothers John and
Murray.
There will be no visitation. A memorial mass will be
celebrated from St. Dunstan’s Catholic Church on Thursday, December 5,
2019 at 12:05 pm with Fr. Bill Brennan as celebrant. For those who
wish, donations in Mary’s memory can be made to the
Fredericton Community Kitchen Inc., the Fredericton Homeless Shelters
Inc. or a charity of the donor’s choice.
www.mcadamsfh.com
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Mary Ralston 19222019..
Death notice for the town of: Fredericton, Province: Nouveau-Brunswick