Mary Lee Williams Lange

1944 - 2023

Mary Lee Williams Lange was born on June 21, 1944 in Cloutierville, Louisiana to Wilmur Williams and Alberta LaCour Williams. Mary passed peacefully in her home on Wednesday, December 20, 2023. She was 79 years old. When Mary was 6 months old, her family relocated to Dickinson, Texas and she remained there until she graduated from Dunbar High School. After graduating, she moved to New Orleans, Louisiana and lived with her sister, Gertrude. Her first job was at the Circle Food Store in New Orleans. As fate would have it, she was asked to stand in her brother James' wedding when she first met her husband Jerry – who also stood in the wedding. Jerry and Mary got engaged on Christmas Eve in 1964 and were married on June 12, 1965. A week after they were married, Jerry was drafted by the U.S. Army and served in the Vietnam War. They were moved to Georgia (where he had basic training) when their son, Jerry Lange Jr., was born on March 12, 1966. After Jerry came home from the war, they moved to New Orleans where their son, Eric Lange, was born on November 3, 1968. In the early 1970s, they moved to Madisonville, Louisiana and Mary started working at a Tropical Fish hatchery and as a secretary. During that time, they built their home in which they have resided for the last 50 years. Mary was later employed as a customer service representative at Cleco and she retired from there after 20+ years. Bored with retirement, Mary went to work at Pan-American Pharmaceuticals where she also retired from after 20+ years. Mary was an active member of St. Anselm Catholic Church where she was a Eucharistic minister and a volunteer at St. Vincent de Paul. She also volunteered at the Covington Food Bank and the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center for many years. Mary enjoyed hosting family gatherings and she breathed life into every party. She loved bowling, traveling the world with her loving husband, family and friends and going to the Saints Football games. Mary was an avid cook and she valued family so much that she would never miss a graduation, talent show, grandparents' day, holiday, or even a phone call. She was a woman of sass with a heart of gold. To know her was to love her. She was preceded in death by her parents, Wilmur and Alberta; her sister Josephine Williams Cagnolatti; her brothers Jewel Williams and Richard Williams; her daughter-in-law Jocelyn Fontenot Lange. She was joined by her sister Bertha Williams Lemond on December 24, 2023. She is survived by her husband, Jerry Lange Sr. and two sons, Jerry Lange Jr. (Audrey Shaffer Lange) and Eric Lange (Patricia Calegon Lange). She is also survived by her brothers: James Williams, Louis Williams, and David Williams; her sister: Gertrude Williams Roussell; her grandchildren: Fallon Shaffer, Tyler Lange, Bradley Thibodeaux, Joshua Lange (Keyera Thomas Lange), Hailey Lange Macdonald (Kevin Macdonald, II), Jordan Lange, Judith Lange, Trey Lucullus, Roman Lange, and Noah Lange; her great-grandchildren: K.J. Johnson, Aubrey Johnson, Joshua Lange Jr., Zion Johnson, Royce Simon, Zoe Lange, Jaylon George Jr., Layla Lange, Amelia Lucullus, Nova Macdonald and three great-grandchildren on the way; her goddaughters: Annette Lemond La Chapelle and Melanie Fabre' Johnson. Mary will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her. Relatives and friends are invited to attend the Funeral Mass at St. Anselm Catholic Church, 306 St. Mary St., Madisonville, LA 70447 on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. with visitation beginning at 9:00 a.m. until service time. Interment will follow in the Southeast LA Veterans Cemetery, 34888 Grantham College Drive, Slidell, LA 70460. E.J. Fielding Funeral Home has been entrusted with funeral arrangements. The Lange family invites you to share thoughts, fondest memories, and condolences online at E. J. Fielding Funeral Home Guest Book at www.ejfieldingfh.com.