Mary Lou McKeon, 85, of Fernandina Beach, Fla., passed away Wednesday, April 17, 2019 at Osprey Village.
Born in Macksburg, Iowa, she was one of three children born to the late Ova G. Wallace and Mary Oreen Eyerly. Mary Lou grew up on a farm in Iowa and graduated from Macksburg High School, where she played basketball. For most of her life, she worked as a secretary for the military in different parts of the United States and abroad. In recent years, Mary Lou lived in Colorado Springs, Colo. before settling in Fernandina Beach to be closer to her granddaughter, Christina.
She was known as a very sweet and kind person, yet independent and strong willed. She enjoyed attending her great-grandson’s baseball games even in the hot summer months. Mary Lou had an impressive hummingbird collection, and she loved to crochet Christmas stockings, doilies, and afghans to give as gifts to her loved ones. She enjoyed watching NASCAR and Denver Broncos football, going to the beach, and freshwater fishing at Farish Lake with her husband when she lived in Colorado. Mary Lou’s can-do independent spirit gained her the title of “Rock Star” at Anytime Fitness, where she worked out three days a week.
She was preceded in death by her parents; brothers, Melvin Wallace and Gene Wallace; husband, Daniel J. McKeon; and former husband, James V. Dolson.
She leaves behind her children, Gayle Evans of Westfield, Ind., Lori Dolson of Glendale, Ariz., and David Dolson and his wife, Cathy, of Villa Rica, Ga.; grandchildren, Christina McLaughlin and her husband, Clint, of Yulee, Fla., Bryan Evans and his wife, Rachel, of Westfield, Amanda Sullivan and her husband, Michael, of Rockmart, Ga., Neal Evans and his wife, Jill Van Gee, of Sunnyvale, Calif., Lisa Dolson and her husband, Jonas Köhne, of Berlin, Germany, Leslie Hill and her husband, Chris, of Westfield, Ind., and Ryan Dolson of Temple, Ga.; great-grandchildren, Dylan King, Caroline Evans, Jake Hill, Kennedy Howard, Alexandra Hill, Luke Sullivan, Kaelyn Dolson, and Eleanor Köhne.
Services to remember her life will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 27, 2019 at Osprey Village Retreat on Amelia Island.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, 4266 Sunbeam Road, Jacksonville, FL 32257.
Please share your memories and condolences at www.oxleyheard.com.
Oxley-Heard Funeral Directors