Mary Lou Duffy Kinsey, 92, of St. Clairsville, OH died Tuesday, June 30, 2020 at Belmont Manor Nursing Home, St. Clairsville. Mary was born May 6, 1928 in McMechen, WV a daughter of the late John and Ellen Durig Duffy and raised in Cameron, WV.
Mary Lou graduated from Cameron High School in 1946. After high School she was a secretary to the President of Cameron Clay Products, Inc.; secretary to the retail advertising manager of the Wheeling News Publishing Co. and worked with Colonel E.B. Hopkins of Wheeling to help plan the evacuation of the Upper Ohio Valley in the event of a Civil Disaster. She and Lois Pugh of St. Clairsville opened an Income Tax Office in St. Clairsville in the 1970’s. She became Assistant to the Controller of Wheeling Stamping and Administrative Assistant to the President of the Hawley Corporation. She ended her working career as Office Manager at Mull Industries.
Mary Lou was a 10 year volunteer at Wheeling Hospital in the CVICU waiting with families for open heart surgery on their loved ones. She and her husband were founders and charter members of the Greater Wheeling Area Chapter 280 of Mended Hearts, Inc.
She enjoyed planning her High School Reunions and Luncheons. She kept her classmates in touch all year long with her updates and they remained a tight-knit group. She was a member of Thoburn United Methodist Church.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Robert H. Kinsey in January of 2011 whom she married in 1948; one sister, Ruth Bonnell.
Surviving are two sons, Robert Kinsey of Hondo, NM and William (Susan) Kinsey of St. Clairsville; a sister, Mildred (Joseph) Trancik of Detroit, MI; six grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews.
Due to Covid-19, private visitation will be held on Monday at Care Funeral & Cremation Specialists 204 West Main Street St. Clairsville, OH with Rev. John Jackson officiating. Entombment at Halcyon Hill Memorial Park Cemetery, Sherrard, WV.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Belmont County Animal Shelter by going to “TMCFunding.com” where she adopted her furbaby, Kasey.
Mary Lou’s last request is that you celebrate her life.
Share your thoughts and memories of Mary with her family at www.carechapel.com.
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Sarah Burge posted on 7/7/20
My grandmother, Sarah Lou (Isiminger) Burge, was best friends with Mary Lou growing up in Cameron and was the maid of honor in her wedding. She spoke of Mary Lou often over the years and, after she learned of her passing this week, she shared some of her memories of their friendship. She said Mary Lou moved to her neighborhood when they were kids. They became friends and would walk to school together every day. They lived in the Green Valley neighborhood. I don't know if you all are familiar with Cameron, but I can tell you it would have been a rather long walk to town! "She could tell jokes from the time we left the house to the time we got to school," Grandma said of Mary Lou. "She was real smart." She remembers lots of sleepovers. In particular, there was one time as teenagers when she stayed at Mary Lou's house and put her hair in rollers. She said, with a laugh, that it looked so bad that Mary Lou didn't want to go to school the next morning. She also remembered going to shows at the town movie theater as teens and hanging out at McNabb's drug store, where there was a soda fountain. "We'd go in there and loaf until Mr. McNabb ran us out." Mary Lou and Bob were married at the Methodist Church in Cameron. Grandma said she and their friends gave their car the full just-married treatment. "We really loaded their car down with tin cans!" Grandma said Mary Lou, who had been two years ahead of her in school, was the one who kept their classmates in touch after graduation and helped organize reunions. For all those years, she said, she always got a birthday card and a Christmas card from Mary Lou. We are so sorry for your loss. Our deepest condolences to your family.