Mary Magdalene Klepper

Mary Magdalene

King Klepper

Decatur

Funeral for Mary Magdalene King Klepper, 89, of Decatur will be Monday, December 5, 2011, at 1 p.m. at Central United Methodist Church with the Reverend Gary Formby officiating and Roselawn Funeral Home directing. Private burial service will be held for family members. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. prior to the service at the church.

Mrs. Klepper, who died Thursday, December 1, 2011, at Decatur General Hospital, was born September 6, 1922, in York, Pa., to Elmer Bruce and Sallie Jacobs King. As a young woman Mary enjoyed boating and waterskiing. Her family moved often with her husband's job, and she used each new hometown as an exciting opportunity to make new friends. She maintained close friendships with so many through her love of letter writing. Since moving to Decatur in 1980, she has been an active member of Central United Methodist Church, and was involved with the church's United Methodist Women's group, HUGS Ministry, and Missions, as well as several community Bible studies. An avid Bridge player, she considered the game one of her favorite pastimes and was a member of several Bridge clubs in North Alabama. She also taught Bridge through community education classes. Mary was also actively involved in P.E.O. (Philanthropic Educational Organization) and the Decatur/ Morgan County Senior Center.

Mary held an array of jobs in the many towns she called home. She was a volunteer at the Veteran's Hospital in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and a library aide at both Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro and Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville, Tenn. She worked in public relations for First National Bank of Athens and then went on to sell real estate in King's Mountain, N.C. Here in Decatur, she worked in public relations for both Morningside Assisted Living and Riverside Assisted Living Homes. She was preceded in death by her husband of 64 years, George Harding Klepper; two brothers, George King and Ralph King; and one sister, Mildred King Meisenhelder.

Survivors include one son, Stephen King Klepper and his wife, Barbara Hogan Klepper of Decatur; granddaughter, Katherine Klepper Cole and her husband, Carl, of Decatur; one great-grandson, Stephen Wynn Cole of Decatur; and sister, Beulah King Morgan of Jackson Hole, Wyo.

Pallbearers will be Charles Hough, Carl Cowart and Jerry Thrasher, all of Decatur, Charles Wright of Mountainbrook and Stanley Lauderdale and Forrest Bedingfield of Athens.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Central United Methodist Church, Decatur, Meals-on-Wheels, Decatur, or the National Alzheimer's Association.

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This obituary was originally published in the Decatur Daily.