Mary Louise Sanchez

July 24, 1926 - March 3, 2019

Mary Louise Sanchez, 92, of Mason City, IA died Sunday, March 3, 2019 at the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown, IA. A visitation will be held from 5-7 pm on Wednesday, March 6, 2019 at Fullerton Funeral Home, 123 2nd ST SE, Mason City. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 am on Thursday, March 7, 2019 at Epiphany Parish-Holy Family Catholic Church with Father Neil Manternach officiating. Burial will follow at Elmwood-St. Joseph Cemetery. Mary was born on July 24, 1926 to John and Simona (Flores) Chavez. Mary’s life was filled with much joy and great happiness but also sadness. She lost both her parents at the young age of eight and was then raised by the Leon and Maria Vega family. Mary graduated from Holy Family High School in 1945 and was also a graduate of Hamilton Business College. She married Merno R. Sanchez on December 1, 1951 at Holy Family Catholic Church. They were blessed with six children: Nina, Mary, John, Phillip, Cindy and Stephen. Mary lost her brother Albert J. Chavez in 1951. Albert was captured in the Korean War and died in captivity. Another brother, Alfonso tragically disappeared in Mexico. Throughout her life, Mary worked for the Mayo Clinic, Migrant Action, K-Mart and Northwestern Bell. At the telephone company she was a member of the Communications Workers of America Union and continued to receive the Iowa AFL-CIO newsletter. She was heavily involved in the Democratic Party; meeting many politicians, from Barrack Obama to John McCain. Mary also stayed active in supporting our Veterans; she attended as many functions and tributes as she could. It was befitting that in her final days, she was cared for at the Iowa Veterans Home. Mary is survived by one sister, Mercy Chavez; daughter, Nina and Jim Givan, daughter, Mary and Kelvin Jones; daughter, Cindy May; son, John and Julie Sanchez; son, Phillip Sanchez; son, Stephen and Susan Sanchez; brother Peter Vega. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Merno; brother, Fred Arroyo; brother, Albert Chavez; brother, Alfonso Chavez; brother, Raymond “Bun” Chavez and sister Lucy Vega. Mary was blessed with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Fullerton Funeral Home, 123 2nd St SE, Mason City, IA 50401, 641-423-8676 www.Fullertonfh.com Facebook/Fullertonfuneralhomes