Mary Reynolds

Mary (McClure) Reynolds, a long-time resident of Troy, passed away at Cabinet Peaks Medical Center on March 27, 2015.  Mary was born on December 14, 1919, in Hughesville, Mo., to Ivy (Shelton) McClure and John Wesley McClure. Mary attended school in Hughesville, Mo., and later in Sedalia, Mo., where she graduated with honors from Smith Cotton High School. She finished second in her class, skipping two grades by the time she graduated. Mary attended college at Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Mo. She later attended comptometer school in St. Louis, Mo. Soon after, she began working for Owens Glass Company. She later worked for Remington Arms in Kansas City, Mo., and then with Trans World Airlines in Washington, D.C.

It was there that Mary met Larry Reynolds. They were married on May 9, 1945, at the Lovely Lane Chapel in Baltimore, Md.  In 1946 they decided to move to Montana, purchasing a 250-acre ranch in the Yaak. They built and developed a 40-acre lake, which Larry named Lake Marireynolds and stocked it with rainbow and brook trout. The lake is now known as Lake Rene.

In 1956 Mary and her family moved to Troy. Mary was elected to three terms on the Troy school board with the last term serving as chairperson. She started teaching at Troy High School in the fall of 1967. Mary taught several classes, including senior English, government, speech, drama and journalism. She was a sponsor for many student clubs and activities, including Pep Club and AFS. She was part of the chain gang for home football games and was on the board for the Troy Student Loan Fund. She encouraged her students to write letters for Amnesty International and continued her support with monthly donations until her death. Mary retired from teaching in May of 1985.

After retiring, Mary taught herself how to use her new Macintosh SE computer and was soon teaching others through Adult Ed classes at Flathead Valley Community College.

She became increasingly involved in the Troy United Methodist Church, serving as chairperson for several committees over the years. She was an active supporter of the Friends of the Library. She devoted her time to caring for her 40-acre forest home, carrying on the legacy of her husband Larry. She was chosen as runner-up for Tree Farmer of the year in 1999. In the years following, Mary enjoyed the tranquility of her forest home and lived there independently until the time of her death.

Mary is survived by her children, Susan Ivy (Reynolds) Utt and husband Rick in Edmonds, Wash., Larry and wife Bonnie (Lange) Reynolds in College Station, Texas, Robert and wife Viviane (Krafft) Reynolds in Bloomington, Ind., and Mary Jo (Reynolds) Cremer and husband Marc in South Jordan, Utah.  She is also survived by grandchildren Eric Lampton, Ivy Leigh (Lampton) Bond and husband Mike, Joe, Amy and Sarah Cremer and great-grandchildren Tyler and Ezra Lampton. She was preceded in death by her parents, five siblings, husband Larry and her son, Jim Reynolds.  

A memorial service will be held at the Troy United Methodist Church on Saturday, July 11, at 2 p.m. A photographic retrospective will begin at 1 p.m.  In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to the Troy Friends of the Library, P. O. Box 430, 3rd and Kalispell, Troy, MT 59935.  Arrangements are by Schnackenberg & Nelson Funeral Home & Crematory in Libby. Online condolences and memories may be shared at www.schnackenbergfh.com.   It is difficult to quickly sum up such along and well lived life. In honor of Mary never say you are bored, remove your hat at the dinner table and take time for others.  Even though Mary lived until the age of 95, time passed much too quickly.