Mary Ellen Shane
March 11, 2016Share using:
Houghton: Mary Ellen Shane, 89, of Houghton, passed away on Friday morning, March 11, 2016 at UP Health System – Marquette Hospital following a brief illness.
She was born in Memphis, Tennessee to the late Albert and Anna (Fuhrmann) Merline, and moved with her family to Detroit at age thirteen.
She worked as an executive secretary for the Cross Company, P.B. Palmer III (the famous Palmer House In Chicago), and Michigan Abrasive Company where she met the love of her life, Mel Shane.
Mary Ellen began her 46 years of volunteer work in 1970 at Children's Hospital of Detroit, and then later at The Children's Home of Detroit in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.
In 2004 Mary Ellen moved to Houghton and began to volunteer at Portage Hospital. She worked for many departments and earned the respect of the staff and others in the community. She often spoke that her co-workers at Portage were like family to her.
She enjoyed knitting for others, site seeing throughout the Copper Country, and was always commenting how she loved the Upper Peninsula.
Two of her most fondly remembered adventures were hiking to the Lake of the Clouds, and riding the chair lift at Mount Bohemia for the fall color tour.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Mel Shane. Surviving are her children: Gale (Mark) LaFond and Margot (Stan) Przybysz; grandchildren Christine (Eric) Roberts , Erika Hebert, Phillip Andrew Thies, and JonScot Gibbons; and great-grandchildren Dominique and Kylie.
Visitation will be held at the O'Neill-Dennis Funeral Home of Hancock on Tuesday, March 15, from 4 until 6 P.M.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Wednesday, March 16 at 11:00 A.M. at St. Ignatius Loyola Catholic Church of Houghton with Rev. Fr. John Martignon to officiate.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her name to the Omega House, 2211 Maureen Lane, Houghton, MI 49931.
To leave online condolences, please go to www.oneilldennisfh.com.