Mary Dierdorff

1928 - 2024

Mary Lovell Dierdorff, 96, died on Tuesday, July 16, in Annapolis, at the home of her daughter Anne and son-in-law Richard Thomas. She had been cared for in recent years by her children and loyal caregivers for whom her family is most grateful. With the support of her husband Ross, she herself was a faithful caregiver of relatives and grandchildren over the course of many years. She was born Mary Dulany Claude Lovell on April 24,1928, in Marlow, England to James H. Lovell and Anne Claude Lovell, a native of Annapolis. As a child during WWII, she and her parents lived in Bermuda, Canada, Florida, and Annapolis. Upon her return to England after the war, she trained as a Nightingale nurse at St. Thomas' Hospital in London, earning her Nightingale Pin. In 1950, after the death of her father, she and her mother moved back to Annapolis to live with her mother's family. She then completed her nursing education at the Medical College of Virginia and became certified as a registered nurse. In October 1952, she married Ross A. Dierdorff Jr and lived briefly in Silver Spring, MD, before the purchase of their home on the Severn River where they raised their six children. She was a devoted mother and actively participated in her children's schools, Indian Landing Boat Club, St. Anne's Church Altar Guild, the Chase Home, Caritas Society of St. John's College and the Anne Arundel Medical Center Auxiliary. She particularly loved the many sailing trips that her family took on the Mary Dulany, a 30-ft sloop built by her husband and named for her. She also worked as a nurse at the United States Public Health Services Hospital in Baltimore and as a proofreader at The Capital newspaper. She was predeceased by her husband of fifty-eight years and is survived by her children and their spouses, Anne D. Thomas (Richard), Ross A. Dierdorff III (Sheree), Mary D. Dierdorff (Bob Wesolowski), Nelda D. Horwitz (David), Susan D. Taylor (Scott), Leslie D. Powell (Russ); fourteen grandchildren; and ten great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at 11 am on Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at St. Anne's Church, Church Circle, Annapolis with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Anne's Parish with "Cemetery - Nature Sacred Project" in the memo line.