Mary K. Saba

Mary Katherine Saba, 99, formerly of Riley Road Apartments, passed away peacefully in her sleep, on Sunday, November 6, 2016, at the Bradford Regional Medical Center Pavilion. Born May 5, 1917, in Indiana, Pennsylvania,  she was the youngest of eight children of the late Mohanna and Affiffee (Kassab) Saba. She attended school in Indiana, but left after completing the sixth grade.

 

Mary Katherine was born with cerebral palsy, which was not diagnosed as such until 1975; she had little muscle control of her left leg and her left arm. She was unable to walk until she was five years old, and her mother carried her around until that time. Despite this, she lived a full and independent life as an adult, working on electronics assembly lines for decades. During World War II, she assembled bomb detonators, a risky job, especially for someone with her disability. Later, she assembled radio tubes in Brookeville, then automatic pilots and electronic medical condensers in the Philadelphia area. In her spare time, she crocheted everything from doilies to lovely bed-sized afghans that she gave to family and friends.

 

Mary married Harry Johnson in 1956; they lived in Philadelphia, near several of her brothers. When her marriage ended in divorce in 1979, she moved to Bradford and lived with her sister Elizabeth (Libby) Shatara on Merrow Avenue. She frequently drove from Bradford to Philly to visit her brothers and other relatives, to Ohio to visit her niece Norma and her family, and to Maryland to visit her brother Dave and his wife, Clara. When the sisters were no longer able to care for the house, they moved to Riley Road Apartments, and had apartments just a few doors from one another.

 

Mary was a member of Grace Lutheran Church and attended services faithfully as long as she was able. When she could no longer drive, she sold her last car, a pale yellow 1979 Chevrolet Malibu to a church member who was interested in its historic value; he is still taking the vehicle to car shows.

 

In Bradford, Mary joined two Pen Pal groups, and at one time had over 150 pen pals. The Bradford Era wrote a couple of articles over the years about her extensive correspondence. She was a voracious reader (mostly inspirational romance), and also put together a dozen or more scrapbooks with pictures, quotes, and interesting articles she found. She enjoyed watching hummingbirds, and had a nectar feeder hanging outside the window at her Riley Road apartment. Mary loved dogs, and for many years had a black miniature Poodle or Poodle blend. Several of the dogs were named Page, and she was always telling stories about them.

 

Mary fought to remain as independent as possible her entire life. She found ways to work around her handicaps, and was able to live alone far longer than anyone thought possible. After she became wheelchair-bound, her stay at Riley Roads was greatly extended by the support of two close friends --  Pat Carbaugh, who shopped for her, and Donna Uhl, who cooked extra food to share with Mary and helped with her laundry.

 

Mary moved to the Pavilion in 2008, after learning that she could not have a fourth hip surgery. Even in the nursing home, wheelchair-bound and with only one good arm, she made her own bed as long as she could and groomed and dressed herself daily. She continued her pen pal correspondence, but reduced the number of pen pals to 75 in 2014 because of increasing difficulty with writing. While she remained mentally sharp, she stopped reading and writing to pen pals in 2016 due to progressive physical disability.

 

Mary developed Merkel Cell Carcinoma, diagnosed in mid-2015. The first, small, tumors were removed surgically. A much larger one paralyzed her right arm in 2016, making it nearly impossible for her to do much by herself, but she still fought to do whatever she could. She hated having to ask for help with washing and dressing and, eventually, with eating. Despite her frustration with her increasing disability, she kept a positive attitude and a sense of humor, and thanked the friends, family, nurses, aides, therapists, and others who helped her with small gifts of cookies and maple syrup.

 

Mary was preceded in death by all of her brothers and sisters: Adele, Austin, Joseph, David, Philip, and Nesley Saba, and Elizabeth Shatara. She is survived by a number of nieces and nephews including Joan Adams, Norma Ayers, Miriam Blohm, Charlie Saba, Jack Saba and Phil Saba, Jack Shatara, Barbara Shatara, and many great-nephews and -nieces. She was especially close to her great-niece Joanette Saba-Sturm, and to her nieces by marriage, Julie Saba and Brenda Shatara. She was also quite close to three friends who visited her frequently: Bridget Babola, Darlene MacDonald, and Cindy Lindquist.

 

Mary's remains were cremated, and she was buried near her sister Elizabeth’s grave at Willow Dale Cemetery in Bradford on November 10. Several friends and family members were present at the burial and offered reminiscences; one friend recited the New Testament verse from Matthew 11:28-30, and a niece led a rendition of the hymn Amazing Grace.

 

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of the Hollenbeck-Cahill Funeral Homes Inc.

 

Memorials, if desired, may be made to the American Cancer Society or a charity of the donor's choice.

 

HOLLENBECK-CAHILL Funeral Home

33 South Avenue • Bradford, PA 16701

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