NORWICH – Mary B. Finch, 76, long-time Norwich resident, passed away on Tuesday morning, Jan. 5, 2010, in the Chenango Memorial Hospital.
The daughter of Amos and Flora Fretts Ray, Mary was born in August of 1933 in Gilbertsville and grew up there where she attended the local schools. At the age of 11, Mary went to live with her sister and brother-in-law, Sarah and Bill Johnson, moving to Norwich in the mid-1950s and taking employment with the Norwich Shoe Company. She later worked for The Evening Sun and the Community Work Shop; but following her marriage on Sept. 7, 1959, in Great Bend, Pa., to George O. Finch, Sr., she put her family first and stayed home to care for them. Known as a feisty lady who would stick up for her family to the bitter end, and would speak her mind when it was needed, Mary was an avid fan of the New York Yankees and loved to go dancing.
Mary is survived by her children and their spouses: Barbara and John Coy of Holmesville, Debra Finch of South New Berlin, George and Jerri Finch Jr. of Norwich, and Ronald and Connie Finch of Binghamton; by her sisters: Sarah Johnson of Mt. Upton, Helen Smith of Madison, and Viola Crandall of Ithaca; and by her brother, Leon Ray and wife Vivian of Unadilla. Her six grandchildren survive: Jennifer Stockwell, Michelle Little, Rev. David Coy and wife Jeanne, George Finch III, Misty Newman and husband Scott, and Jessica Finch; along with 8 great grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Mary was predeceased by her husband George on Jan. 29, 2005; her sisters Betty Kennedy, Alberta Brooks, and Edna Rogers; her brother, William Ray; brother-in-law Bill Johnson; and grandson-in-law, Robert Stockwell.
Funeral services for Mary will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday from the R.J. Fahy Funeral Home. Mary’s grandson, the Rev. David Coy, pastor of the Faith Baptist Church of Cortland, assisted by Rev. Romeyn Kipp of the Holmesville Baptist Church, will officiate. Interment will be at a later date in Mt. Hope Cemetery. Friends are invited to call at the R.J. Fahy Funeral Home on Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m.
Please consider memorial contributions to either Hospice and Palliative Care of Chenango County, 21 Hayes St., Norwich, NY 13815; or the Norwich Volunteer Firemen’s Association, P.O. Box 631, Norwich, NY 13815, for the Ontario Hose Company.