Mary Ann Kirk

Mary Ann Kirk was born on November 30, 1942 in Salt Lake City, Utah. She passed away in her home in Salt Lake City, on May 4, 2020 of natural causes.

Mary Ann was adopted at seven months old by her loving parents, Verlie Seely and George Fisher Kirk, and was raised as their only child. Both of her parents came from large families, so Mary Ann enjoyed years of family reunions with Uncles, Aunts and lots and lots of cousins. She especially liked spending time at her Uncle’s ranch riding horses. She would tell you that she was somewhat of a tomboy in her youth, defending herself, if necessary, from the neighborhood boys.

Mary Ann was married twice, but had no children.

She traveled all over the world and spent time living in Europe.  She was educated, intelligent, witty and an excellent conversationalist.  She could talk about almost any subject with ease. She worked in various fields, including as a nanny in Paris, France, but at the height of her career she was the owner/operator of her own travel agency which she built from the ground up and operated in Texas.  

She was proud of her parent’s family history and belonged to the Utah Daughters of Pioneers. She loved being an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and served in various positions at church. She was a beloved nursery leader for many years where she cared for the youngest children with love and attention.  She also loved singing in the choir.

She was a true animal-lover and had a soft spot for all things living.  She was the go-to care-giver for the pets in the neighborhood, often caring for neighbors’ dogs, cats, and rabbits over extended periods of time.  Animals knew they were loved by her and neighbors always knew they could depend on her help.

In her later years, she enjoyed serving in the Salt Lake temple, and as a stake family history worker.  She made good friends and associations fulfilling these services.

In 2018 while giving a lesson in her local  DUP camp she felt the desire to know more about her birth family. Through the miracle of DNA she was connected with her birth mother’s family who had been searching for her for a number of years. In March of 2019 she was able to meet all 6 of her living half siblings. She went from being an only child to being the oldest of 8. This was a source of true joy to Mary Ann and she felt loved and welcomed by her newly discovered family.  The last year of her life seemed to be a very happy one as she served in the ways she loved, came to know and feel a part of a dear family, and continued her associations with friends.

Mary Ann is survived by cousins on the Seely and Kirk sides of her family. She is also survived by her half-siblings; N. Curtis (Laurie) Yates, E. Corinne (Verl) Davis, Rita (Curt) West, Jan (Cherie) Yates, Z. LaRue (Duane) Phillips and Valerie (Douglas) Yates-Freeman. She was preceded in death by her parents, Verlie and George Kirk, her biological mother, Eva Durrant Yates and her half-brother, Walter Yates.

Thank you to all of those who loved and were a part of Mary Ann’s life.  She will be missed.  
Graveside services were held on Friday, May 8th.  Any shared memories of Mary Ann would be greatly appreciated and can be emailed to: maryannkirkmemories@gmail.com.