Mary Josephine Doeringer

Mary Josephine Davis Doeringer, aged 91, of Flossmoor, passed away peacefully on Sunday, March 16th, after a short battle with cancer.

Mary Jo is survived by her four children: John Doeringer and his wife Shih-Liang of West Town; Mary Odin and her husband Wayne of Charleston, W.Va.; Joseph Doeringer and his wife Sonia of Swampscott, Mass.; Elizabeth Nelson and her husband Peter of Ann Arbor, Mich.; and grandchildren Ruth and James Odin, Tallulah and Beatrix Doeringer, and Henry and Hugo Nelson.

She was predeceased by her sisters, Louise Davis Hinshaw and Hannah Martin Hammer, both late of North Carolina, as well as John, her husband of 52 years.

Mary Jo was born on September 20, 1933, in the Warrenton, North Carolina home of her grandparents. She was the youngest daughter of Martin Jones Davis and Ethelyn Von Canon Davis. In 1935, following the death of her father, she moved with her family to the home of her maternal grandparents in West End, N.C. She demonstrated early talent in piano and went on to earn a degree in music from Greensboro College in Greensboro, N.C. She then moved north and earned bachelor's and master's degrees from the Yale School of Music in New Haven, studying summers at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. After graduate school, Mary Jo took a faculty position at Hanover College in Hanover, Ind.

In 1961, having been introduced by mutual friends from Yale, Mary Jo married John Henry Doeringer of Evanston, Ill. They initially settled in Park Forest and moved to Flossmoor in 1968, where Mary Jo continued to reside until her death.

Mary Jo's life was marked by music and spirituality. She adored children and was known to compose music on the spot to entertain any child within earshot. She taught piano for many years and was a highly sought after accompanist for music competitions. Mary Jo was a longtime member of Living Springs Community Church in Glenwood, having been a longstanding member of its predecessor the Homewood Reformed Church. She was an enthusiastic participant in various bible study and prayer groups and joked that she was often the last one to leave on Sunday.

She was a voracious reader, constantly studying, recommending, and giving books to others. She loved animals and had a particular love for birds—she memorized field guides and could immediately identify every bird on her property, and she took great pleasure when the rare species would stop by. She maintained her backyard bird feeders in all types of inclement weather, and she repeatedly nursed injured birds back to health.

Mary Jo was a great believer in maintaining human relationships and was an avid practitioner of the lost art of handwritten correspondence, especially to her many old friends and extended relatives. She was the one person who remembered everyone's birthday. She was beloved by many for her enthusiasm as well as her general attitude of encouragement—she simply loved to see others succeed, and she never said an unkind word about anyone.

Visitation will be Friday, March 28th from 3–8 PM at Tews-Ryan Funeral Home, 18230 S. Dixie Hwy in Homewood. Funeral services will be on Saturday, March 29th, at Living Springs Community Church, 19051 S. Halsted St. in Glenwood, beginning at 11:00 AM, with a viewing one hour prior to the service. For further information, please contact Tews-Ryanfh.com or call 708-798-5300.