Mary Brown Bowden of Vero Beach, Florida and Capitol Island, Maine, formerly of Weston, Massachusetts, passed away Dec. 13, 2024, surrounded by her loving family.

Born in Ridgewood, New Jersey on March 4, 1934, to Dr. Russell Charles Brown and Mae Shallcross Brown, Mary attended local schools and then graduated from Skidmore College where she made lifelong friends, several of whom gathered to celebrate their 90th birthdays. At one such friend’s wedding she met her dear James Goodwin Bowden III, the two married not long after and cherished their 58 years together.

Mary and Jim spent every summer on Capitol Island, in the Boothbay Harbor region, enjoying life on the water, family and close friends. Visiting with Mary on her porch, it was clear she basked in the beauty of the place and glowed with love and care for those she sat with.

Mary always put others before herself. After college she gave up the dream of a career to help her parents when her father had a debilitating stroke. After her marriage to Jim, they moved to Weston, Massachusetts and raised two children, Kimberly and James. Mary became involved in the Junior League of Weston, and subsequently, became the vice president of the Boston Junior League working tirelessly to implement a program in satellite areas around the city called Reading is Fundamental.

Mary also supported her husband at his company in Cambridge, Miller and Seddon. Later in her life, Mary took on jobs she loved both in Vero Beach at a Grand Banks dealership, and in Boothbay Harbor at the Rocktide Inn. She took great pride in a job well done and made people feel warmly welcomed.

Mary Brown Bowden developed a community of friends, neighbors and family over the years offering them her true friendship, bright mind and quick wit. She made them feel like they mattered, and that’s because they did. When asked how she would like those in her life to remember her she replied, “I want them to know how much I cared for them.”

“Miss Mary” was supported and loved by two special caregivers, Patricia Jennings and Kim Johnson who made it possible for her to remain in her home until almost 91 years of age and get to her beloved Capitol Island one last time.

A loving wife, mother and grandmother, Mary is survived by her daughter, Kimberly Bowden Cooper and her husband Tom, and her son, James Goodwin Bowden IV and wife Joy, seven grandsons Robin Alexander and Will Shallcross Peckham, James, Tyler Harper, Chadwick Shallcross, Trey Michael and Chase Haley Bowden, five great-grandchildren, Lilli, Julia, Mason, Weston and Hudson. Mary is also survived by her sister-in-law Eleanor Davies Bowden, and seven nieces and nephews: Bobby, Jonny, Molly, Diane, Rusty, Tracey and Sue.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to Stand Up to Cancer.

Arrangements by Strunk Funeral Homes & Crematory, Vero Beach, Florida. A guestbook is available at www.strunkfuneralhome.