Mary Ann Miller, 81

December 01, 2024

Mary Ann Miller, 81, a resident of Garden Spot Village, New Holland, passed away December 1, 2024 at Lancaster General Hospital. She was the wife of Eugene (Gene) Miller, with whom she spent nearly 57 years of marriage.

Mary Ann was born in Bellevue, PA to the late Herman and Hilda Wuenschel, and grew up in nearby Avalon under the watchful eye of her three older brothers. Her family relocated to Montgomery County where she graduated from Springfield High School in 1961. Mary Ann earned a B.A. in history from Ursinus College in 1965, and an M.A., also in history, from Penn State in 1968.

She and her husband met in the History department at Penn State. They spent eight months in Germany in 1968-69, where she studied German at the Goethe Institute in Berlin. After returning to the United States, they settled in the Hazleton area where she worked for more than twenty years as a legal secretary for the law firm of Falvello, Ustynoski, Giuliani, and Bernstein, now Ustynoski and Marusak.

She was also employed for several years as a secretary at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, Drums, and was an active volunteer there and at St. John Bosco Catholic Church, Conyngham. Mary Ann lived her life anchored in her faith, always approaching every situation with a strong sense of fairness, justice, and equality.

In addition to her work, Mary Ann spent time at home raising two children and tending a bountiful garden. She was a selfless and attentive mother, spending hours preparing healthy meals, planning birthday parties, baking cookies, decorating for holidays, and never ever forgetting to mail a birthday card. She became a skilled gardener who spent the early spring starting her saved seeds, and countless summer days tending to lettuce, green beans, tomatoes, peppers, squash, asparagus, leeks and shallots. She loved sharing garden news with her brother Jim in Philadelphia, exchanging updates on when things would come into season. Her family enjoyed the fruits of the garden all year long, especially her homemade tomato juice.

Mary Ann’s passion for learning continued throughout her life. She completed the Penn State Master Gardeners program, was active in bible studies and helped adult students complete the Rite of Christian Initiation. An avid reader, Mary Ann always had a varied selection of books from the library and a fresh page of sudoku and puzzles from the local newspaper. After relocating to New Holland with her husband, she became a member at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church and continued to enjoy gardening, reading, playing Bridge, and getting to know new friends.

Mary Ann’s family wishes to express its deepest appreciation for the skill and dedication of the surgeons at Lancaster General. They are particularly grateful to Dr. Jeremy McGarvey for his daily and candid updates on her condition. They also wish to acknowledge with profound thanks the superb, 24-hour treatment Mary Ann received from the medical professionals in the Intensive Care Unit at LGH.

In addition to her husband, Mary Ann is survived by a daughter, Sandra, of Bellefonte; a son, Michael, of Wilkes-Barre; a brother, Daniel Wuenschel, of Beverly, MA; and thirteen nieces and nephews. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by two brothers, James and John Wuenschel.

Friends will be received by Mary Ann’s family at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, 150 Water St., New Holland, PA 17557 on Friday, December 13 from 10-11 AM, with the Mass of Christian Burial to be celebrated at 11 AM. Interment will be in St. Joseph New Catholic Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Mary Ann’s memory to Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, or to the ELANCO Library, 11 Chestnut Drive, New Holland, PA 17557.