Mary Elizabeth Stephenson, loving wife and mother of two children by blood, plus many more by love, finally beat cancer's hold on her, passing away in her sleep at age 74 on March 12, 2021 in Canton, Georgia.
Mary loved cats and books. She read everything from science fiction to fantasy and murder mysteries. With characteristic generosity, she shared both passions with all she met.
She was born on October 29, 1946, in Union City, Tennessee, to Mary Agnes Stephenson and William Russell Stephenson, almost two years after the couple lost her older brother, William Joseph Stephenson.
Two years later, when her father, a WWI veteran, died at age 52, her mother, an immigrant from Blantyre, Scotland, was left alone to raise Mary.
Mary graduated from Union City High School in 1964. She studied history at The University of Tennessee at Martin where she met Rodney Eugene Waldrip. They wed in 1967 and had two children, Christopher (Chris) W. Waldrip and Shona E. Waldrip. That marriage ended in 1993.
In 1998, Mary wed William (Bill) Cuttle Francis of St. Simon’s Island, Georgia. They retired to Canton, in 2006.
Along with her mother, father and brother, Mary was preceded in death by one grandson, William Colin Byron Waldrip, the 24-year-old son of Chris.
She is survived by her second husband, her two children and grandson John Donald Shumway III.
There are also several cats that will certainly miss her and are looking to Bill for comfort and care.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be no memorial service. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Cancer Society at https://donate.cancer.org
South Canton Funeral Home, dedicated to the families we serve, 770-479-3377. Online condolences may be made to the family at www.thescfh.com