Mary Nell Roos

Mary Nell Roos, née Young, passed peacefully from this life into the loving arms of Christ on January 8, 2026, at the age of 93. She was born November 4, 1932, to Nellie Vivian Young and Joe W. Young in McAlester, Oklahoma and named for her Mother and the Mother of Christ. She was the oldest child and the first grandchild to arrive in the extended family.

She spent considerable time in Bartlesville, Oklahoma at her Grandparents. Her Mother had seven siblings and eventually there were numerous cousins along with her younger brother Terry joining the bustling family gatherings. Her parents moved the family to Pharr, Texas, where she finished at Edinburgh High School.

She graduated from Mary Hardin Baylor, an all-women's college located in Belton, TX, with a Bachelor of Science in music. While attending Mary Hardin Baylor, she met John "Jack" Francis Roos, while he was stationed in the Army at Fort Hood, having seen him at church.

They married on September 22, 1956, and she joined her new husband in his native Seattle, where she was cold for the next 46 years! They welcomed three daughters, Cindy, Kristi and Judith while living in the Pacific Northwest. She was so proud of her three girls and their individual gifts and talents. She was always willing to offer her assistance to each of them during challenging times in their lives. That love and support never faltered even as she aged.

During the time that Mary Nell and Jack lived in Surrey, British Columbia, they helped plant Royal Heights Baptist Church. Mary Nell had a beautiful soprano singing voice and was often the soloist during Sunday Services. She taught Sunday School, served as a Girls in Action leader, and was always an encouragement to others. They made wonderful, life-long friendships from their time in the Pacific Northwest.

In April of 1944, as WWII raged overseas, her Uncle Noel Douglass was a Left Waist Gunner on a B24 Liberator stationed in East Anglia, England. He was killed 6 weeks before DDay when his aircraft crashed during take-off for their second mission of the day, killing all aboard and two on the ground. This event was impactful to the 12-year-old Mary Nell. She recalls the family going to the train station when her Uncle's body was repatriated almost two years later and returned to Oklahoma.

Later in life, this event led Mary Nell to seek out and connect with family members of other crew members that were killed, as well as those who had served in the squadron and might recall her Uncle. Her search, in the pre-internet days, led to life-long friendships and her involvement in the WWII 446th Bomb Group, that touched the lives of the whole family. Eventually, she became the first female non-veteran to serve as the President of a WWII Bomb Group. Even into her late eighties and early nineties she served as Chaplain for the Bomb Group. She was a patriot, loved our country and was so grateful to those who served our country.

After raising three daughters, she returned to teaching, in Lynden, WA, and she still talked about how the first-graders were her favorites.

She was an exceptional cook and baker and loved to entertain. She never met a stranger and anyone from Texas, Oklahoma or the South, who visited their Southern Baptist church in British Columbia, was invited over for Sunday dinner, even if that meant a stop at KFC on the way home to supplement the pork chops on the menu. In her later years, mom always invited neighbors to drop by for coffee and Fika (Swedish coffee break)!

Mary Nell was an avid reader who taught her daughters the love of reading a good book, a murder mystery, and more obscure stories about World War II, such as spies, the French and Dutch resistance and life in the Army Air Corps..

She shared with her daughters a love of music that included the WWII Big Band music, Broadway musicals, Handel's Messiah, and the soulful spirituals sang by Mahalia Jackson. Mary Nell was devoted to many hours of driving to get the girls to piano lessons and other activities.

Her talents extended to sewing and quilting with many seasonal quilts, and quilt wall-hangings adorning their home.

Mary Nell is survived by daughters Cindy Bell (John) of Renton, WA; Kristi Pedersen (Eric) of McCall, ID; and Judith Roos (Mark Tashiro) of Purcellville, VA. Grandsons Andrew Bell, Evan Bell, Erik Kristian Pedersen and Leif Pedersen and sister-in-law June Young. Numerous nieces and nephews in Washington, Texas and Montana, and cousins, all of whom she dearly loved.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 68 years Jack in March 2025; her brother Terry Young of Austin, TX; and her parents, numerous Aunts, cousins, and friends.

Services will be held at 11 a.m. at North Fork Baptist Church in Purcellville, VA. Burial will follow beside her beloved Jack at Goose Creek Burying Ground in Lincoln, VA with a reception to follow.