Our loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Mary Frances Owens Kressin, peacefully went home to the Lord on June 19, 2022, at the age of 90.

Mary was an only child to Bill and Frances Owens.  Though you would rarely meet a humbler person, she grew up in Edina, Minnesota in a country club community.  Mary was an only child, but was very close to her many, many cousins and considered them siblings.  Mary was a good student, but also excelled in sports like softball, which was unusual for girls of that era.  She was involved in drama, even gaining membership in the National Thespian Society while in high school.  After university, Mary starred in a local TV show in Minneapolis, reading books to children.  Mary attended Catholic school growing up and so continued her education at St. Catherine's College, majoring in Library Science.  Her time at "St. Kate's" was incredibly special to her.  She commented that an advantage of going to an all girls school was that you could wear curlers in your hair to class and no one minded!  Mary was very well traveled.  She traveled to many big cities in the U.S. and even Mexico with her parents.  She traveled to Europe twice on "St. Kate" trips, making many memories with her dear friends, and stayed very involved in the St. Catherine alumni group.  After university, Mary was hired as a Worthington school librarian.  Since each school in those days did not have a school library, Mary drove a huge bookmobile all throughout the district even in snowy winters and because she drove the Book Mobile she was required to join the "Teamsters" Union.  She worked as a children's librarian until she married.

In the late 1950s, Mary went on a blind date organized by her cousin Helen.  There she met the love of her life, Tom.  Their first date did not go so well and Tom even commented that they had a fight on their first date and did not see each other for about six months.  Upon their second date they realized they loved each other and were married on July 11th,  1959 and began growing their family right away.  They moved to Torrance, California from Minnesota following Tom's job.  Within 8 years, Mary had given birth to 6 children.  As the family grew, Tom and Mary needed to move to bigger homes.  From Torrance, they moved to 2 different homes in Palos Verdes, and then on to Carlsbad.  Wherever they lived, Mary made the house into a home.  Mary was a devoted mother to her children, never thinking of herself and always putting them first.  She made sure books were always a part of their lives as well as supporting them in any sports they wanted to participate in.  She was often seen driving the big blue "bus" (Ford van) around town filled with all of her children.  She never failed to give her children good, nutritious meals, even putting vegetables in their sack lunches.  She loved all of her Children, Grandchildren and Great GrandChildren completely and unconditionally.  While supporting her husband unceasingly, he would freely admit she kept him in line.  Mary was the moral compass for her family.

After raising the children in Carlsbad, Tom and Mary moved to La Costa to enjoy the marvelous beach views, and then Leucadia to enjoy the marvelous beach walks.  In 2005, they moved to warmer Fallbrook, where a 1 story home seemed more practical.  In Fallbrook, they have been active members of the community and dedicated parishioners of St. Peter the Apostle Church.

Mary is greatly missed and survived by her husband of 62 years, Thomas; her children and their spouses:  Maggie (Peter), Peter, Katie, Andrew (Diana), Jim (Cathy), and Joe (Angelina); her grandchildren:  Maureen (Nick), Ryan, Brendan, Caitlin, Thomas, Lauren, Mathew (Cheyenne), Sarah, Daniel (Tiffany), Jared, AJ, Mary Cate, Skye, Jacob (Henrietta), and Leah (Jared); and her great-grandchildren:  Arden, Lennox, Liam, and Audrey.

Mary had a profound faith in God, always standing up for others even at her own expense.  She installed deep Catholic morals in all of her children.  Though we miss her greatly, we know she is whole in mind and body in heaven, basking in God's love and peace.

All who knew her are welcome to attend.  Donations can be made to St. Peter's Catholic church.