Mary Alma Riess

1920 - 2018

Mary Alma Riess passed away at her home on Saturday, May 19, 2018. She was born January 4, 1920, the daughter of Alma Mary Sirera Riess and John Riess, and sister of Dr. John Karlem Riess. A lifelong resident of New Orleans, she attended Louise S. McGehee School and Graduated as a member of Phi Beta Kappa from H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College. Miss Riess was a world traveler and was well known for her prize-winning rose garden. She will also be remembered for her generous support of many of her city's institutions, most notably Newcomb College, Tulane University, and the St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church, where she taught Sunday school classes for many years, and where the church's recently dedicated chapel was her gift to the congregation. She was also a substitute teacher in the New Orleans Public School System. A funeral service will be held on Tuesday, May 22, 2018 in the chapel of St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church, 1545 State St. in New Orleans, at 2:00 pm. Interment will follow in Metairie Cemetery. Friends and relatives are invited to a visitation in the chapel of St. Charles Presbyterian Church from 1:00 pm until service time. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Riess Scholarship Fund, Tulane University, 218 Gibson Hall, 6823 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, La 70118. To view and sign the family guestbook please visit www.lakelawnmetairie.com.