Mary C. Ireland, 91, of North Henderson died April 14, 2023 at Knox County Nursing Home in Knoxville, Illinois.
Mary was born October 27, 1931, the daughter of Clarence and Elizabeth Patterson of North Henderson, Illinois. She graduated from Alexis High School in 1949 and from Cottage Hospital School of Nursing in 1952. She worked as a Registered Nurse for Drs. Merrill Beecher of Knoxville and John Bohan of Alexis. While she raised a family she worked as a Registered Nurse at Cottage Hospital. In the mid-1970s she worked at Admiral/Rockwell International as an industrial nurse as well as the Red Cross Blood Bank in Galesburg.
She married Richard A. Ireland in 1955 in Alexis and worked tirelessly on the family farm in North Henderson helping her husband, Richard. She is survived by a son, John (Nadine) of Atlanta, Georgia and a daughter, Marcia (Mick) Greenman of Rio. She was preceded in death by her parents and husband of 66 years.
Mary’s family would like to extend a sincere thanks to the wonderful staff at the Knox County Nursing Home for their hard work and kindness. Memorials may be made in Mary’s name to the OSF Hospice or an animal shelter of the donor’s choice.
At this time there are no funeral arrangements. Arrangements have been entrusted to Watson Thomas Funeral Home and Crematory, Galesburg. A celebration of life will be held at a later date. Online expressions of sympathy may be sent to the family at www.watsonthomas.com.
