Mary Degraaf

Mary Abigail Sawyer DeGraaf, 98, of Ammon, passed away February 19, 2011, at her home of causes incident to age. Mary was born December 8, 1912, in Steuben, Maine, the only daughter of Charles Addison Sawyer and Josie Dunbar Sawyer. She grew up with her two brothers in this small rural community on the coast of Maine and graduated from Steuben High School. She also attended Machais Normal School and obtained her teaching certificate. She taught in one-room schools for several years following her graduation. Mary loved children and later taught second grade wherever they lived until her retirement in 1970. Mary met Bastiaan DeGraaf on a blind date while he was vacationing in Steuben. They were married August 17, 1937, in Steuben, Maine, at the Sawyer family home. They made their home in Yonkers, New York, where Bastiaan worked for Otis Elevator Company. During the depression when things got tough they moved back to Steuben and ran a poultry farm. They later lived in Bar Harbor, Maine, Falls Church, Virginia, Daphne, Alabama, and Fairhope, Alabama. They were married 69 years before Bastiaan passed away at age 100 on January 12, 2007. Mary moved to Liberty Square Retirement Community in Ammon in 2008 to be near her family in Idaho. She loved living at Liberty Square and enjoyed socializing with the residents there. Mary attended Falls Southern Baptist Church in Idaho Falls. She enjoyed traveling with Bastiaan thoughout the United States and loved gardening, reading, and animals. She always had a cat as a companion. Mary is survived by her daughter, Elizabeth (Fred) Hossner of Ashton; two granddaughters, Jennifer (Andy) Rowland and Jill (Rocky) Elliott; and three great grandchildren, Benjamin Rowland, Katherine Rowland, and Koa Elliott. She was preceded in death by her parents, two brothers, Herman Sawyer and Charles Lloyd Sawyer, and a granddaughter, Amy Hossner. A Celebration of Life for Mary will be held at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, February 26, 2011, at Liberty Square Retirement Community, 2475 South Ammon Road, Ammon. The family will visit with friends following the services at Liberty Square. Burial will be in the Pineview Cemetery in Ashton at a later date.