Mary Seton Elizabeth Killeen McDermott was born on Christmas Day in 1939. Being a Christmas baby has been a big part of her story. It seems only fitting she would take her journey home in the midst of the Christmas season.

Mary was born in Philadelphia, PA, as the last of 10 children to Sarah Matilda Ann Cassidy Killeen and Thomas Joseph Valentine Killeen, known to us all as "Mom and Papa". Concerned for the health of their tenth child, Mom and Papa prayed for the intercession of Mother Seton (Elizabeth Ann Seton), who later became a saint.  And, with that, Mary started her large, Irish-Catholic faith, family, fun, love-filled life.

Mary attended Immaculate Conception Grade School in Germantown and Little Flower High School in Philadelphia. She and her sisters all loved to dance. She even got to dance on American Bandstand. Mary met the love of her life, John Daniel "Jack" McDermott, when she was 15 – although she told him she was 17 at the time. Jack was a "soda jerk" in the local malt shop, where Mary visited often with her friend who thought he was really cute. But, Jack only had eyes for Mary. They married after Jack returned from Korea -- and she was 18. They were blessed with five "good kids": Mary Seton (Bill) Smart, Eileen (Steve) Parn, John (Connie) McDermott, Joan (Tim) Casper, and Bill (Kristin) McDermott. Mary loved her 17 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Jack (two months shy of their 60th wedding anniversary), three brothers, six sisters, son-in-law, Bill Smart, and grandsons, Brandon Casper and Brian Smart -- all of whom we are sure were there to welcome her home.

Mary was primarily a stay-at-home mom picking up multiple part-time jobs over the years to help at Christmas time. After moving from Pennsylvania to Illinois in 1977, she worked many years for Montgomery Ward and then retired from AIG New Hampshire Insurance in 2005 – making lifelong friends at both companies.

Mary and Jack volunteered at St. John of the Cross Church (Roslyn, PA) on the social event committee. She also volunteered as a Cub Scout Den Mother and at the grade school as a Lunch Room Mother. She was also known as the "pretzel lady" on Tuesdays.  She continued her volunteer work at St. Joseph the Worker Church in Chatham on the M.E.R.C.Y Community committee. She and Jack were members of the OWLS senior group at St. Joseph and they both volunteered for seven years at Memorial Medical Center and the Baylis Building.

Mary loved to travel to maintain deep connections with her family – especially to attend her grandkids' sporting events. She thoroughly enjoyed entertaining and feeding friends and family. She also enjoyed cross stitch, gardening, and playing solitaire or Wordle on her phone. Any time spent with family was considered precious. She also loved all the family pets. She kept up with technology to video chat with her kids, grandkids and great-grandkids. She was on Facebook and Snapchat, as well as online banking and grocery orders. Whether it was St. Patrick's Day, Fourth of July, or Christmas, Mary loved to celebrate the holidays with family and always dressed in the theme.

Mary loved family, but she also kept friends for life. She was blessed with so many kind and caring friends. She thoroughly enjoyed visiting with her dear friends at local wineries and restaurants.

Mary Seton Elizabeth Killeen McDermott passed away December 18, 2023.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 - 7:00 PM Thursday, December 21, 2023 at Vancil-Murphy Funeral Home. Funeral Mass will be held at 12:00 PM Friday, December 22, 2023, at St. Joseph the Worker Church in Chatham and burial is at Camp Butler National Cemetery immediately after. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to St. Jude ( www.stjude.org ), Wounded Warrior ( www.woundedwarriorproject.org ), or the Brian Smart foundation ( www.givebutter.com/briansmartfoundation ).