Obituary of Mary Harris

Mary A. O'Connor Harris, loving wife and mother, passed away on Sunday, December 12, 2010, at 56 years old in her home in Basking Ridge, NJ. She was surrounded by her loving family; Bill, Billy, and Julie. Visitation will be on Thursday and Friday December 16 and 17 from 2-4 and 7-9 pm at the Higgins Funeral Home, 752 Mountain Blvd. Watchung, NJ. The funeral services will be held at St James Roman Catholic Church in Basking Ridge on Saturday, December 18th at 9:00 am. The burial will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery in Basking Ridge. Mary was born at St. Vincent's hospital in Staten Island, NY. She attended Notre Dame Academy High School and was awarded a Bachelor of Science and Masters Degree in nursing from Wagner College, graduating Magna Cum Laude. Mary was a member of the Wagner College Nursing Honor Society, the American Nurse Association and the American Association of Critical Care Nursing. During her nursing career, Mary worked as a Critical Care Nurse at NYU, and a clinical supervisor for medical nursing at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY; ultimately rising to become the Assistant Director of Nursing at Monmouth Medical Center. After the birth of her two children, she stepped away from nursing to focus on raising her family. Mary's administrative skill would serve her well even after she left the world of nursing. She served two terms as President of the St. James Home School Association, and actively participated as a classroom Mom at St. James. Upon her daughter Julie's graduation from high school, Mary returned to work in the capacity of school nurse for the Waldorf School and Immaculate Conception in Somerset County. She held the latter position until her battle with cancer began three and half years ago. Mary loved to spend time with her family; whether at their home in Basking Ridge, or their condo in Ft Myers FL. Traveling throughout the world with her husband and two children brought her great joy. Over the past twenty years, the family has vacationed in Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Italy, England, Spain, Portugal and multiple states across the US. Mary had a strong faith and belief in God. She was an active member of St James Church, and served as a Eucharist minister to the sick of the parish. Mary loved the kinship of friends. She also enjoyed gardening, cooking, reading a good book and making wine with a group of good friends. Mary Harris is survived by her husband of 30 years, Bill, son Billy, and daughter Julie, who will all miss her very dearly. She leaves behind two sisters Margaret Bruder of Edison, NJ and Eileen Santacroce of West Palm Beach, FL. Her brother, Nick O'Connor of Staten Island, NY, passed away in November, 2009. In lieu of flowers, Mary asked for donations to be made in her memory to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Please make donations payable to: Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, Att. Jane Weyl: MSKCC 633 3rd Avenue 28th Floor New York, NY 10017