Mary Louise Yopes

1923 - 2022

Yopes

Mary Louise Yopes (Age 98)

Mary Louise Yopes, passed away peacefully on May 11, 2022, in Kensington MD. She was born Mary Louise Leinberger in December, 1923 in Santa Ana, California. She grew up in neighboring Tustin, in a house next to an orange grove. Her parents were Grace Eva and William Stanley Leinberger, and she had one older brother, Bill Leinberger. Mary went to local Tustin schools and received an Associate degree at Santa Ana Community College. She was a few weeks shy of 18 when Pearl Harbor was bombed and during the war volunteered as a nursing aide at the local hospital.



Until her mid-twenties, Mary lived at home and worked as a secretary at a plumbing supply company. She was introduced by neighbors to her husband, Paul F. Yopes, a mining engineer, in 1947. After they married in 1948, they spent their year-long "honeymoon" taking a slow boat to Peru and traveling by mule to a remote mine that Paul had been hired to evaluate. When Paul began a job at the U.S. Bureau of Mines, they lived in Seattle, WA and Albany, OR before moving to the Washington, DC area permanently in 1955, finally settling in Bethesda, MD in 1956. By that time they had four children, ages one to seven.



Mary spent the 1960s as a homemaker and volunteered hundreds of hours as group leader for the Boy Scouts and Camp Fire Girls, receiving numerous awards from the National Council of Camp Fire Girls over the 12 years she held leadership positions. She was a talented pianist and singer, and sang with a local chapter of the Sweet Adeline Barbershop ensemble. She played tennis well into her 80s and avidly followed the Nationals. As a passionate birdwatcher and gardener, she made her yard a welcoming place for cherished neighbors.



Mary and Paul traveled extensively in the United States, Africa, South and Central America and Europe. After Paul died, Mary continued to travel with family, to Ireland, Alaska, Western Canada and on several European river cruises. She took her last major trip to Eastern Canada when she was 93.



Above all, Mary was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She took loving care of her husband Paul during his last years, until his death in 2000. She bequeathed her children and grandchildren a love of music, laughter and adventure. To share a laugh with Mary was one of life's joys.



Mary is survived by a son, Eric Yopes; and daughters Martha Lennon and Jennifer Angelo. Her daughter Mary Lou Plutschak predeceased her in 2020. She has six grandchildren: Joshua Lennon, Jessica Lennon, Margot Yopes, Eva McMullen, Thomas Yopes and Caroline Yopes. She has five great-grandchildren. A celebration of life will be held at a later date.