Mary Lou English

Mary Lou English (Ryan) of Citrus Heights, CA, passed away peacefully at the age of 91 on May 13, 2024.

Born on July 9, 1932 in Detroit, Michigan, Mary Lou was the sixth and youngest child of Vincent John Ryan and Mildred Ryan (Gibson).

She is predeceased by her siblings Ellen, Patty, Gertrude, Mike, and Jack.

Mary Lou's life long love of sports was nurtured from a young age by her father.  They enjoyed listening to baseball games on the radio together.  She was a devoted Notre Dame sports fan and later a San Francisco 49ers and San Francisco Giants fan.

Mary Lou attended St Mary's College in South Bend, Indiana and moved to California in the 1960's to begin her teaching career in elementary Catholic schools.  In 1984, Mary Lou and her friend, Judy Leeper, ventured into the business world and opened a specialty shop in downtown Los Altos named White Duck Designs.  For 10 years they enjoyed interacting with the community and stocking their store with unique items for home and family. The pre-retirement years lured Mary Lou back into teaching.  The before and after school programs in San Rafael and Sacramento benefitted from her years of experience teaching elementary children.  The environment allowed her to share her interest in art.  She created age appropriate activities based on the masters such as Monet and Picasso.  She was loved by her students and finally retired at the age of 80.

Mary Lou is survived by her beloved son Brian, daughter-in-law Sarah, and her beautiful granddaughters Alexandra and Gabrielle.

Aunt Mary Lou was a dedicated and loving second mother to two of her nieces and will be greatly missed by all 25 surviving nieces and nephews who epitomized her as "the artistic, cool aunt" who was always dressed to perfection.  She is preceded in death by her loving husband of 44 years, Paul Kennedy English and their son Sean.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to St Jude Children's Hospital (www.stjude.org) , Mary Lou's favorite charity.  

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 am, Wednesday, June 26th, 2024,  at St. Nicholas Catholic Church, 473 Lincoln Ave., Los Altos, CA 94022.  Interment will follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, 22555 Cristo Rey Drive, Los Altos, CA.  A lunch to celebrate Mary Lou's life will follow.

 Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her. 

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