Mary Goding

1931 - 2021

MARY E. GODING

February 9, 1931 - March 20, 2021

Mary Elizabeth (Law) Goding, 90, passed away in her hometown of Rochester on March 20, 2021. Her sudden passing following some health concerns has saddened us deeply. We take comfort knowing that she is now with her beloved husband, George, and many other cherished relatives and friends. We are confident they have all welcomed her with open arms into the next "mansion" within our Father's House (referenced in John 14:2).

Mary was born in Springfield, Massachusetts on February 9, 1931, the daughter of Sidney Fuller Law and Marion Henrietta (Dickinson) Law. The youngest of 3 surviving children-her 4-year-old sister Ruth having passed away in 1930-Mary enjoyed reading, art, animals and spending time with her religious, Congregationalist grandfather. Mary's mother was a college graduate (Mount Holyoke College, class of 1918), a rare achievement for a woman of that time. Mary knew she would also go to college, graduating from Technical High School in Springfield, MA in 1948 and then attending the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. There, she met fellow student George Goding of Woburn, Massachusetts on a blind date, ate some pizza at the Aqua Vitae Restaurant in Hadley, and then went bowling. George claimed that Mary scored higher than he did because of the distraction of her attractive, red shirt. Mary graduated in 1952 with a BS in Home Economics. Art was her minor field.

Mary and George were married on May 30, 1953 and began their life together in Springfield before buying a home in Orange, Massachusetts. During this time, Mary worked at the Springfield Public Library. They brought their little family to Peterborough, New Hampshire in 1963, after George got a job with New England Ball Bearings. Later that year, George saw the newspaper announcement of an NAACP presentation to be held at the Unitarian Church in Peterborough. A woman in attendance, Polly Marlowe, caught George's attention with her astute questions and, from her, he learned of the Bahá'í Faith and its principles that include racial equality, racial unity, and the equality of women and men. Soon thereafter, George declared his faith in the 100-year-old religion. Mary took her time to study the Bahá'í Writings, to ask many questions, and to contemplate sacrifices made by two of her aunts who had traveled to Syria as missionaries. Later in 1964, on George's birthday, Mary formally joined the Bahá'í Faith. True to the Baha'i principle of the equality of women and men, George forfeited his Marathon run in 1966, preferring to be in a position to ensure Bobbi Gibb's safe finish as the first female runner to complete the race. Their son Philip recalls being there in Boston with his mother Mary to support George's efforts, and acting as witnesses to this historic day. Within a few years, a Bahá'í call for "homefront pioneers" prompted the Godings to choose Vermont and they arrived in Rochester in 1969.

Mary was active in the Rochester Bahá'í community from then on, serving as their Secretary for decades. She supported many Bahá'i activities and projects and arranged for the family to visit Green Acre Bahá'i School, a spiritual retreat center in Eliot, Maine, where they often saw lifelong friends Jane and Dick Grover and their children. Mary attended Bahá'í youth conferences with some of her children in Oklahoma City and St. Louis, and arranged the travel plans for a family Pilgrimage to Haifa, Israel in 1986. The Bahá'I Pilgrimage was followed by a tour of Christian, Jewish and Muslim sacred sites. Mary and her family also attended the Bahá'i World Congress in New York City in 1992.

Baha'is try to dedicate themselves to a life of service. Mary committed herself to the raising of her 3 children, Philip, Joanne and Rebecca, and running the household in rural Vermont. She had always wanted to live in the country. She loved gardening, natural cooking and the pursuit of health by natural means. She was using organic foods and nutritional supplements as early as the 1960's, joining local food co-operatives, cooking all her own foods, and offering yogurt popsicles to her children and neighborhood friends. Mike Hartshorn of Rochester still happily reminds us about the popsicles.

Mary also had an entrepreneurial and creative side. Mary made many articles of clothing for the family and was a meticulous mender, getting the most use out of every garment. Her Shaklee distributorship enabled her to offer its natural nutrition supplements. Mary also worked on occasion as a weekend cook at the Mountain School, a residential high school with an ecology-oriented hands-on Organic farm experience in Vershire, Vermont. Later, she established "Green Mountain Toppers," knitting and selling custom-made ski hats to individuals and ski shops in the Killington area. George, Joanne, and others knitted hats for her as independent contractors using Mary's templates and knitting machines.

In 1980, Mary accepted a position with Geiger of Austria, who sent her to Austria for 3 months to learn the sewing operation. She was uniquely suited to this career, having studied textiles at UMass, and with her mending skills. Geiger built a manufacturing facility in Middlebury Vermont, where she would work as a supervisor in the repairs department for the next decade.

Around the time the Geiger position ended ten or eleven years later, George accepted the position of Resident Manager at the Park House, a senior residence in Rochester, where he worked for 19 years. Mary and George moved to the Resident apartment in the basement of the Park House. Mary continued her side projects, offering Market America products for sale, sewing for a company called Russian Renaissance, and taking in tailoring projects from local customers. Kathryn Schenkman was a favorite customer. Mary was still doing this work up until recently.

Mary's family has been very much involved with the White River Valley Players, starting with the very first production, "The Invisible Dragon" in 1980, and the continuing participation of her grandson, Tristan, who has performed with the Players and assisted with their Theater Camp for Kids as recently as 2019. Indeed, once a new, high school building was completed in 1974 together with a new auditorium, Mary talked Joanne into trying out for a role in the very first musical production to be offered in that auditorium: "Pinocchio." In the 1990's, Mary also acted in several productions of the White River Valley Players, such as "The Music Man" (1991).

Also in town, Mary was also happy to participate in interfaith gatherings, including the "Spiritual Journeys" group that was initiated by Reverend John Pinder. She enjoyed the book clubs offered by the Rochester Library. She and George also led, and participated in, the Bone Builders program at the Park House.

Mary always encouraged her children to see the wisdom in their challenges and to learn from them. She would offer insights into the deeper spiritual significance of whatever life challenge they were having. Her presence in this way will be deeply missed.

Mary is survived by her son Philip F. Goding and his wife Cheniece Brown Goding of Rochester and Brattleboro Vermont; and daughters Joanne M. Goding (Jeffrey H. Moss) of Hadley, Massachusetts and Rebecca L. Passa (Thomas C. Passa) of Easthampton, Massachusetts. She is also survived by ten grandchildren and step-grandchildren: Tristan Rich-Goding, Mischa Spittle, Arianna Rich, Kayla Adler, Danielle Adler, Jennie Moss, Jesse Lee Steventon, and Max, Séamus and Iain Passa; one great-granddaughter, Ruby Spittle; and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her husband, George Arthur Goding, her brother Sidney Law and her sister Barbara Greemore.

Mary's life will be celebrated on ZOOM beginning at noon on April 17, 2021 and it is the hope of the family to offer something in person when we are able to do so. In accordance with Mary's wishes, burial is to be next to her husband at the Vermont Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Randolph Center in the spring. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Mary's memory to the P. F. Goding 2016 Special Needs Trust, Joanne Goding, Trustee, 11 High Meadow, Hadley, MA. Online condolences may be left at www.dayfunerals.com. Arrangements are under the direction of the Day Funeral Home, Randolph.