Mary Ruth Waldrop Downey, 87, of Huntsville, Alabama passed away peacefully at her home on April 18, 2022. She was born July 8, 1934, in Gadsden, Alabama. She was raised on her family’s farm. She always held dear to her heart the life and memories made there. She graduated from Gaston High School in 1952 and continued her education at Jacksonville State University where she met and married Bill Downey. They spent the next few years at Camp Gordon, Georgia where their son, Billy, was born. Later, they moved to Scottsboro, Alabama where their daughter, Mary Beth, was born. They eventually settled in Huntsville in 1960.
While raising their two children, she went back to school and completed her degree from The University of Alabama in Huntsville. She worked at UAH in the registrar’s office before taking a job at Southeastern Institute of Technology where she worked until her retirement.
She was a member of St. Thomas Episcopal Church. She was an avid reader and enjoyed playing in several bridge clubs. She was kind, generous, and lived a very simple and serene life. Her family was always her highest priority.
Mary was preceded in death by her husband, Bill Downey, and her parents, Adolphus (Pat) and Rena Waldrop. She is survived by her sister, Martha Pullen, and brother, Pat (Hilda) Waldrop; two children, William Eric Downey (Eddye), and Mary Beth Dobbs (Pete); four grandchildren, Dustin Eric Downey (Salee), Peter Downey Dobbs (Lauren), Nicholas Eric Downey (Lauren), and Jacob Downey Dobbs; and six great-grandchildren, Erin Sloan, Elin Downey, Erica Downey, Eric Downey, Ellis Downey, and Madeleine Dobbs.
A private family service will be held on her farm in Gadsden.
