Mary Elizabeth Shaw's Obituary
Mary Elizabeth Cowin Nelson Shaw (2/4/25- 6/2/12)Surrounded by her family, Mary Shaw passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 2. For the past seven years, Mary had been a resident of St. Paul's Tower retirement community at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California.Born and raised in Oakland, the only child of Albert and Grace Cowin, Mary graduated from Fremont High School in 1942 and received her teaching degree from San Francisco State College in 1946. She married her high school sweetheart, Harold Nelson, and began a career in elementary school teaching that was interrupted by the births of her four children and her husband's transfer by Shell Oil Co. to Washington State in 1955. Following the family’s return to Oakland in 1962 and Harold's death in 1966, Mary resumed teaching in the Oakland Public Schools, retiring in 1974. She then became an active volunteer in the community. Mary was a deaconess at her church, helped establish the Peralta Hospital gift shop and was instrumental in developing the volunteer reading program at Redwood Heights Elementary School.Mary married Albert Shaw in 1969. Albert brought three children to the marriage. Their combined family was blessed with thirteen grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren.Mary was a very spiritual woman and active for nearly forty years at First Covenant Church of Oakland. Preceding Mary in death were husband Albert (2003) and two of his children, David Shaw (2009) and Jane Wiles (2011). Surviving Mary are her children: Bill (Pat), Jim (Marla), Carol and Nancy Nelson, and step-daughter Myra Gulley Faucus (James), and Mary's grandchildren: Cody Gulley, Beau Shaw, Josh Gulley, Anne Garschagen (Nelson), Dierdre Lawrence (Shaw), Eric Nelson, Emily Defoe (Wiles), Kristina Nelson, Kate Nelson, Will Wiles, Elizabeth West (Wiles), Charlie Nelson and Kyle Nelson and great-grandchildren: John Gulley, Owen Shaw, Aiden Lawrence, Connor Lawrence, Xander Shaw, Juliet West, Willa Garschagen, Justine West, Grace Gulley, Harry Garschagen, Ethan Defoe.A memorial service will be held for Mary at First Covenant Church, 4000 Redwood Road in Oakland on June 9th at 2 pm. Donations in Mary's memory may be directed to Faith Network of the East Bay at 2633 Telegraph Ave. #409, Oakland, CA. 94612.
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