Memorial for Mary S. Mason

Mary was born in Waterloo Iowa, on Nov. 20, 1926 and died of emphysema at home in Palos Verdes on Nov. 7, 2010. She is survived by her husband, John L. Mason; brother, Harry H. Schulte Jr.; brother-in-law, David L. Douglas; children, Andy (Susan), Peter (Roberta), Mary Anne, and John E. (Mary V.); nieces, Margaret Correll (Bill) and Julie Satterlee (Rick); nephews, Rob Gira, Michael Gira (Siobhan), and Dan Gira (Victoria); five grandchildren, Shane, Claire, Lauren, Patrick, and Margaret; eight grand-nieces and grand-nephews; Shane's mother, Carole Duncan, and sister, Shannon Rakestraw (Brandon).

Mary's family moved to Southern California from Iowa in the 1930s. Mary attended Elliott Junior High School, Pasadena City College, and Scripps College, where she received a BA degree in History of Art in 1949. Early jobs were at JPL, UCLA, and Garrett Corp. She did graduate work in math at UCLA, and later continued her studies at USC, where she received an MS in Computer Science in 1976. She worked as a computer programmer at Xerox Corp. from 1979 until her retirement in 1992.