Mary H. Hastings

Being her personal trainer for years, she was also ready to work out. Whenever I entered her room, she would sit up, put on a big smile and be ready to move. At 104 years young, she had more strength than people half her age. She will be missed by the many Residents and staff at Carleton-Willard.

I knew Mary as a "neighborhood Mom" in the Wellesley Hills neighborhood where I grew up. Her daughter Nancy was my best friend from when I was about 3 until the family moved to Michigan when I was 9. Mary was part of a gaggle of Moms who always seemed to know where we were and what we were up to. The Hastings back yard was the BEST to play in!

We reconnected when I was in my 50s. I vividly remember the day Mary called me at work, having tracked down my location somehow (she was always as sharp as a tack); I answered by saying "This is Judy," and she replied "Judy Clymer?" I thought "Whoever this is, she has known me for a LONG time!" Through Mary I also reconnected with my childhood friend Nancy and her daughter Lisa, who turned out to live less than a mile from us in Portland, OR, and later with Tom and all the "kids" (now in their 70s) who played "Capture the Flag" and "Relievio" in that fabulous neighborhood.

My sister-in-law and I visited Mary at Carleton-Willard in 2015, when Mary was 100 years old and STILL sharp as a tack! By then my own mother and the other neighborhood Moms had died; Mary was the last of a generation who shaped all of us with her humor, her attentiveness, and her brilliant mind. She had a good life, the ripples of which are still spreading outward.

Mary has been a good friend since I moved to Carleton-Willard in 2001. I have treasured our friendship! It has also been a pleasure to have known some members of her wonderful family, especially Nancy and Frank, who have been so attentive to Mary. I will miss them as well as my dear friend. I send my love and deepest condolences to everyone in Mary's family. Esther Braun

It was such a pleasure to have know Mary for 20 years at Carleton-Willard. She was an amazing person and loved by many. Fly with the angels Mary.