Mary "Mardy" Harrison (Harrison) Wheeler

On Thursday, March 28th, Mary (Mardy) Harrison Wheeler passed away in her sleep with her beloved husband David by her side. Having endured health challenges related to Alzheimer’s Disease, her tranquil passing provided her loved ones with the blessing of a peaceful passage.

Mardy was born in Easton, Maryland on May 9, 1938. Mardy’s parents Robert Butler Harrison and Alice (Elizabeth) Fontaine Harrison, and brother Robert C. Harrison were part of the military family and Mardy spent much of her youth living with her family in several locations, including 2 years in Turkey. Mardy attended high school at Walsingham Academy in Williamsburg, Virgina, graduating in 1956.

Mardy and David met in New York City in 1961 and quickly fell in love. They joyfully wed in May 1962 in Sparkill, NY, and then moved to Old Town, Maine. They welcomed their first child, Paul, in 1965 and in 1968, Mardy earned a BA in English from The University of Maine. Just one year later, the Wheelers gladly embraced Mauri’s arrival and settled in an old farmhouse in Monmouth, Maine

Life in Maine was busy; Mardy was quite involved in town life and loved entertaining. She was incredibly passionate about the arts and theatre, traveling extensively to enjoy Broadway and London Theatre shows often. She also supported the local playhouse by hosting the seasonal professional Shakespearean actors that came in from New York at her home. Mardy worked for an insurance company in Lewiston, Maine as a personal manager. The company promoted her, and moved the family to the Boston area where they settled in Natick in 1978.

Mardy was in Liberty Mutual’s corporate Human Resources Department before moving to the Loss Prevention Department as Director of Training. Both departments recognized her outstanding talents in designing, introducing, and facilitating training programs for management, organizational change, career development and interpersonal and consulting skills. While at Liberty Mutual, Mardy pursued and earned her Master’s Degree in Human Resources and Development from The American University, Washington, DC in 1982.

After 19 years, Mardy retired and formed Kendall & Wheeler, a training consulting partnership with Betsy Kendall. They were adjunct faculty members at UNH, BU and Bryant College, and designed and facilitated training programs and workshops for a variety of businesses and government organizations for seven years. HRD Press published their book, A Quality Foundation.

Mardy loved opera, classical and contemporary theater, occasioning trips to New York City, Oregon, Ontario, England, and Italy. She loved traveling to Kiwanee, Illinois to meet dear friends and enjoy the annual hog festival. Mardy loved the people she met and always made friends whether she spoke their language or not. She also enjoyed many trips to Alaska, Canada and Europe with David and the grandchildren.

Mardy was always a prolific writer. Besides authoring two management training manuals, she published two books of poetry and six books of fiction. She was a hospice volunteer, and taught courses locally in bereavement. She was also active in the League of Women Voters.

She is survived by her cherished husband, David; children, Paul Wheeler, Marjory (Mauri) Tetreault; their respective spouses Elizabeth Wheeler and Gene Tetreault; grandchildren Timothy and Angela Wheeler, Emily (husband Adam) Ryba, MaryEllen (husband Timothy) Nietupski, Jacquelyn (husband Benjamin) Johnson and Joseph Tetreault; great grandchildren Jackson and Sophie Ryba and Millie Nietupski; nephews Randolph and Scott Harrison, and Danny and Matthew Wheeler. Also, friends, neighbors, and numerous former mentees whose lives she positively influenced.

Family and friends will honor and remember Mardy’s life by gathering for a visitation at the John Everett & Sons Funeral Home, 4 Park Street, NATICK COMMON, on Thursday, April 11, 2024, from 4-7 PM with a short memorial service to be held at 6:30 pm. Interment will be private.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Mardy’s memory may be made to The Alzheimer’s Foundation.

To share a memory with Mardy's Family, kindly visit: everettfuneral.com

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