Mary F. (Whiting) Jarvis, 96, of Amesbury, former longtime West Newbury resident, passed suddenly Tuesday afternoon, April 11, at Merrimack Valley Hospice House, Haverhill, with her family at her side. She was the wife of the late Allan Perley Jarvis, who passed April 14, 2013.
Born at the family homestead in Merrimac Jan. 19, 1921, she was the oldest of four children of the late W. Harold Whiting and the late Harriet P. (Wood) Whiting Reynolds and was a graduate of the former Merrimac High School, class of 1938. During the 1950s and 60s, she worked at the Haverhill National Bank in various capacities. She loved music and dancing and enjoyed playing the piano and singing in various church choirs. She was a long-time member of the West Newbury Garden Club and enjoyed gardening and traveling with her husband and family throughout the U.S. and Europe.
She leaves behind her only child, Allan P. Jarvis Jr., and his wife, Martha of Merrimac; sister, Natalie (Whiting) Christie of Amesbury and former longtime Merrimac resident; two sisters-in-law, Dorothy (Nelson) Whiting of Merrimac and Margery (Tessimond) Whiting of Merrimac; along with numerous nieces and nephews, extended family members and dear friends.
The family thanks the entire staff of the Elizabeth Calsey House on Lions Mouth Road in Amesbury, for the compassionate care they provided to Jarvis over the past three years.
A memorial service takes place Tuesday, April 18, 1 p.m., at the Highland Street Chapel of Paul C. Rogers Family Funeral Home, 2 Hillside Avenue, Amesbury. Burial in Locust Grove Cemetery, Merrimac, is Thursday, April 20, 10 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to The Elizabeth Calsey House, 286 Lions Mouth Road Amesbury, MA 01913 or The Merrimack Valley Hospice House, 360 North Avenue, Haverhill, MA 01830.