Mary W. Stitt

Mary W. Stitt, proud matriarch of five generations, died on Thursday morning, October 23rd in Ripley, at the home of her granddaughter, Lori Cuneo, surrounded by family and friends, while under the wonderful care of the Chautauqua County Hospice nurses. She was 90.

Mary, also known as "Nanny," was born on July 1, 1924, in Richmond, Virginia. When she was a toddler, her family moved to Wrightsville Beach, N.C., where her folks ran a general store for many years. Her dad was Jeptha Bennett and her mom was Arnie Pearl (Pennington) Bennett. Nanny's loving husband of many years, Lester Stitt, passed away in 2010. Nanny was one of eleven children. Her sisters were Nancy and Pearl. Her brothers were Jimmy, Jack, John, Oscar, Harry, Charles "Teeny," Joe, and Edward. Her brother Frank survives.

She is also survived by six children. Her sons are Harry Bennett (Dawn) of N.C., Harold "Skeet" Hamilton of Arizona, Buster Wilkinson from North East, and Tommy Wilkinson (Lyi) of Leland, N.C.

Her daughters are Nancy Elliot of Virginia and Fern Reslink (Larry) of North East.

She is survived by many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and three great-great-granddaughters; her soul sister, Marty Rogers; and her great friend, Sandy Dean.

She was a member of the following organizations: VFW Post 4789, VFW Ladies Auxiliary, American Legion Post 105, American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, Brotherhood of St. Joseph, and The North East Funnel Club.

After WWII, Nanny fell in love with a soldier and moved to North East with him and started a family. She worked in the restaurant business for many years. Some of the places she worked at were Texas Lunch, South Shore Inn, Hanes House, and St. George's Tavern in North East. She worked at The Brotherhood of St. Joseph Club in North East from the 1980s up until 2007, where she was very highly regarded. She loved the trade and considered her customers and co-workers as her second family.

She and Lester enjoyed playing the lottery, dancing, and bowling. She loved to shop with Lori and was always busy buying gifts for everyone. She enjoyed getting her hair done once a week by her great friend, Mary Busch. She was a consistent patron of the arts. She loved music and could be seen supporting her grandson's band until just a month ago when her health began to decline.

To know Nanny was to love her and she was loved by all.

Friends may call at the William D. Elkin Funeral Home, 65 S. Lake St., North East, on Monday 2-4 and 7-9. There will be a funeral service at Elkin's at 2 p.m. on Tuesday.

Sign the Guestbook at www.GoErie.com/obits