Our beloved mother, Mary Catherine Immel Akins, passed from this life August 8, 2012 in Oak Harbor, Wash. at the age of 91.
Mary was born on December 20, 1920 in Helena, Montana. Her parents were Amelia and Ernest Immel. Mary was a lively redheaded girl who enjoyed life. She would talk of her father, “the newspaper man”, and was always interested in his conversations with his cronies/colleagues.
On her way to work one cold winter day when Mary was in her twenties, she saw a man walking ahead of her whose warm winter coat she admired. As it turned out, the coat belonged to the brother of her friend Jean Akins Downing. It wasn’t long after the introductions that Mary and John Akins were a happy couple. They were married on June 23, 1945 in Helena, Montana. They soon moved to Seattle and later to Tacoma.
How do we talk about our mother, who she was, what she meant to us, her five children? In our Montlake, Seattle neighborhood her voice could be heard calling us in for dinner. She tied pennies in a handkerchief for school milk (some of us still carry handkerchiefs). As children will, we took her for granted, too busy running around the neighborhood and being children to notice her sacrifices.
Decades later, we called her Saint Mary. She often drove sick or infirm neighbors to appointments, volunteered at St. Charles Borromeo Church, and opened her ears and heart to those in need. After her children were grown she finished college and tutored English language learners. She brought many a lonely Mexican or Iranian exchange student home for dinner from her job at Tacoma Community College. Mary was wise and kind, a winning combination sustained by her deep Catholic faith.
Mary is survived by her five children; Barbara Thelen of Oak Harbor, John Immel Akins of Auburn, Fred Akins of Port Townsend, Marian Renvall of San Diego, Calif. and Ron Akins of Mercer Island. She is also survived by 13 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, John Creighton Akins.
A funeral mass will be served for Mary Catherine Akins at St. Charles Borromeo Church in Tacoma on Thursday, August 16, 2012, at 9:00 a.m. Family and friends are encouraged to share memories and condolences at www.whidbeymemorial.com.
