Mary Rose Hapeman, 81, formerly of Edinboro, died Monday, December 3, 2018 at her home in Florida. She was born in Rutland, VT on August 3, 1937, the daughter of the late William and Grace Mershon. Mary met her husband Martin at a sorority mixer while she was attending Albany State Teachers College and he was attending Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
While still in college, they wed in 1957. Mary and Martin started their large family while living in upstate NY and moved to Erie in 1965 where Martin began his career at GE and Mary continued raising their ever growing family. They moved to Edinboro in 1972 to raise their 10 children.
After retirement, they also had a home in Zephyrhills, Florida where they resided during the winter months. Mary and Martin were avid dancers. Upon retirement, they became avid ballroom dancers, traveling throughout the country to dance.
Mary was a devout Catholic and a member of Our Lady of the Lake Church in Edinboro. She also attended St. Francis Xavier Church in McKean and more recently, St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in Tampa, Florida. Mary and Martin practiced meditation with daily recitation and prayer of the Holy Rosary.
She was active as a volunteer in many ways within the Catholic Church, participating actively as a member of the Altar and Rosary Society and also assisting in the instruction of confirmation classes. Mary was an excellent seamstress and made many of her clothes and costumes for ballroom dancing. She was also a skilled embroiderer and knitter.
She took great pride in passing on her skills as a seamstress to her daughters. While raising her 10 children, Mary remained determined to finish her college degree and earned a Bachelor of Elementary Education Degree from Edinboro University in 1992. She was preceded in death by her parents William and Grace Mershon.
Survivors include Martin Hapeman, her beloved husband of almost 62 years; her 10 children, Deborah (Rocco) Taliani, of FL, Mary (William) Kemm, of Erie, Bryan (Sheri) Hapeman, of Mercer, Rebecca Harrison, of IA, Lawrence (Cynthia) Hapeman, of NC, Cynthia (Eric) Dillen, of Edinboro, David Hapeman, of Mercer, Martha (Brendan) Minnock, of Mercer, Sean (Mindy) Hapeman of FL, and Jay Hapeman, of Edinboro; two sisters, Jean Sheehy and Marjorie Foster, both of Florida; also 20 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. Friends may call at the Glunt Funeral Home and Crematory, Inc., 210 Erie Street, Edinboro, on Tuesday, December 18, 2018 from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. A Funeral Mass will be held on Wednesday December 19th at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Edinboro. Burial to follow in Edinboro Cemetery.
Memorials may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at stjude.org. To send condolences please visit www. gluntfuneralhome.com.
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