Mary Anne Dean

1928 - 2025

Mary Anne Dean

May 17, 1928 - November 6, 2025

Our beloved Aunt Mary Anne Dean passed from this life on November 6, 2025, at the age of 97.

She was preceded in death by her parents Charles Edward and Catherine (Cate) Burke Dean, and her sister Kathleen Dean Canepa.

Mary Anne was born on May 17, 1928, in Madison, Wisconsin, and named after her grandmother, Mary Ann Donovan Dean. She was raised in Madison and attended Blessed Sacrament Grade School and Edgewood High School. She attended the University of Wisconsin, School of Business as an undergraduate, and received her Master of Art from the University of Wisconsin Library School in 1951. She was a proud member of the Delta Delta Delta (Tri Delta) Sorority.

She had a 30-year career as a research librarian at Northwest Mutual Life Insurance Co., Milwaukee where she worked as the Business and Law librarian. She later moved to Madison and became the Research Librarian for the Credit Union National Association Inc. (CUNA). During this time, she supported her aging parents and soon after their passing, she retired early and moved to Cleveland, Ohio. In Cleveland she shared a home with her sister Kathleen after the death of Kathleen's husband Philip J. Canepa in Rocky River and Westlake for the next 47 years. There she enjoyed her Tri-Delta sorority, the many local library offerings for continuing education and learning, the Western Reserve Historical Society, and Cleveland's museums. Mary Anne was intellectually curious and always approached new interests in that special librarian way. She enjoyed ordering and reading books on a wide variety of subjects and loved to reference maps and dictionaries in multiple languages as she read. Her understanding and memory of current and historic events enabled her to always enjoy conversations with her grand nieces and nephews about their varied careers. She worked for years doing in depth genealogy research of the Madison area Dean/Burke, and Canepa/Cassata families. She and Kathleen were descendants of the first five generations of Deans in the health care field and founders of the Dean Clinic and St. Mary's Hospital.

Mary Anne was involved in the lives of her nieces and nephews, visiting them in California and New York, New Mexico and parts in between. She was especially involved with the Cleveland based families supporting the many activities and giving special time to the great nieces and nephews.

Mary Anne was always kind and gentle, sweet and dear, elegant and proper, and forever supportive to her sister and all of us. She leaves behind her loving nieces and nephews, Ellen (John Brzytwa), Joseph (Laurie), Katie, Charles (Linda), and Julie; and 15 great and 9 great-great nephews and nieces. We miss her dearly. May she rest in peace.

The Funeral is planned for Saturday December 13, 2025, at 11 am at St. Ladislas Church in Westlake Ohio. Family will be receiving friends at 10 am in the Gathering Space of the Church prior to the Funeral Mass. Burial will be privately held at St. Joseph Avon Cemetery.