MARY EDITH FUSSELL

FUSSELL, MARY EDITH Mary Edith Fussell, artist, activist, teacher, mother and friend, died Tuesday, September 1st, surrounded in body and in spirit by her great loves and loyal friends, in the sunroom of her Clinton home. She was seventy. Although Mary was born in Lima, Peru, she spent most of her childhood in LeRoy, New York, before moving to Manhattan where she attended Sarah Lawrence College and was a successful set designer and artist. Mary first moved to the Connecticut Shoreline in 1973 and in 1986 welcomed her only daughter, Allie Rowbottom, who was raised by Mary and Mary’s then husband, George Rowbottom, in the Guilford and Clinton area. During her lifetime, and despite a twenty-three year battle with carcinoid cancer, Mary traveled the world, recording in pencil sketches and paintings what she saw. Regardless of the country, Mary could often be found drawing with a slew of curious children and admiring art enthusiasts looking over her shoulder. Mary was nothing if not a connector of people, places, ideas and dreams; she loved her friends with a loyal fervor and felt passionately about the political and transformative potential of art, friendship, nurturance and love. She is survived by her daughter Allie and Allie’s husband Jon Lindsey; life-long friends, Judy Rasmuson, Richard Mogavero and Penelope Bodry-Sanders, George Rowbottom, Kenneth Wood; and countless beloved others. A memorial celebration for Mary full of food, music and memories will be held from 4-6 pm on September 26th at the Guilford Art Center. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Mary’s honor to the following organizations: Connecticut Hospice; Planned Parenthood; www.gofundme.com/maggieweloveyou