Mary Pauline Millard Harold died peacefully at her home in Jasper August 15th after a short illness. She was 93.

Mary is survived by a nephew, Robin Sawyer of Great Britain; stepdaughter, Jane Waller (Jake) of Jasper; stepson, William Harold (Nancy) of Powell, Tennessee; granddaughters, Rosemary Wigington (Allen) of Jasper, Jeca Taudte (Stephen Totilo) of Brooklyn, New York, Katie Harold and Evy Wilson of Knoxville, Tennessee; grandson, Rev. William Waller (Emily) of Rocky Mount, Virginia; great-grandchildren, Kate and Jake Wigington of Jasper, Ada Rose and Finnegan James Totilo of Brooklyn, and Ezekiel Waller of Rocky Mount.

Mary was born in Devizes, Wiltshire, England in December of 1925 to Donald Field Millard and Mabel Pitt Millard. They preceded her in death, as did her sister, Ann Lawrence. When she was six, her family emigrated to Australia, where they spent a year and a half. Her mother hated it and they returned to England. Mary’s mother died when Mary was nine, and she and her sister went into the care of their paternal grandparents.

She was baptized and confirmed at St. Johns Church in Devizes, and upon graduation from La Sagesse Convent School in Romsey in 1942, finished her business administration degree at the University of London in 1943. Mary immediately joined the British Royal Navy and served as a plane spotter.

She came to the United States in 1954, and spent 25 years in hospital administration in Tampa, Florida. She married William Harold of Gray, Tennessee in 1978, retired, and lived in East Tennessee until 1991 when they moved to Jasper to be near family. Her husband died in 1993.

Mary read to children in the library at Jasper Elementary for ten years as a volunteer. Her favorite memory of that time was of a little boy, taken with her British accent, who asked her, “Miss Mary, do you speak English?” She volunteered for 25 years with the Piedmont Mountainside Hospital Auxiliary, working every Friday in the gift shop. She retired from that position only last November when the trek from the parking lot became too much.

It was Mary’s wish that she be cremated and her ashes scattered in the gulfstream in the Atlantic, in hopes that a small morsel will return to England.

The family will receive friends at Roper Funeral Home from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 20, 2019. A Memorial Service will be held at The Episcopal Church of the Holy Family at 11:00 a.m., Wednesday, August 21, 2019.

In lieu of flowers, Mary would appreciate donations to Pickens Animal Rescue; PO Box 45; Jasper, GA 30143.

Arrangements are entrusted to the staff of Roper Funeral Home & Crematory in Jasper.

Online condolences may be made at www.roperfuneralhome.com .

 

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