Mary Talbert's celebration of life will start at 2:00 p.m. and the schedule will consist (tentatively) of the following:
2:00- 2:45: Informal interaction, browsing among displayed items (pictures, photo books, etc.) - refreshments provided

2:45 - 3:15: Opening Prayer, followed by selected photos & music from videodisc,showing some of Mary's life and experiences

3:15 - 3:55: Short recollections from family members:
Willard Talbert, Marc Talbert, Ken Talbert, Linda Canton, Cynthia Maxwell, Max Williams (brother), Marion Long (cousin)

3:55 - 4:00: Hymn of Promise (Natalie Avey, Elizabeth Talbert - both are granddaughters)

Closing Prayer (Rev. Melissa Warren)

Mary Talbert, 80, of Ames, passed away peacefully the morning of March 20 following a sudden heart problem.
Mary was born in Casper, Wyoming to Moy and David Williams, and was raised in the city of her birth. She enjoyed growing up with many friends in Casper, along with summer hiking to nearby Casper Mountain and winter ice skating on the frozen North Platte River. She valued family trips to Wyoming nature attractions (such as the Tetons) and to see relatives in SE Wyoming and central Iowa. In 1950, her family moved to Boulder, Colorado where she finished high school. In 1952, she married her "steady" friend, Willard Talbert, in Casper, and they resumed life in Boulder where she had two children, Marc Alan (in 1953) and Kenneth Earl (in 1954), and Willard finished his undergraduate education at the University of Colorado.
In 1954, Mary moved with Willard to Ames, Iowa, where Willard continued his education at Iowa State University. A third child, Linda Sue, was born in 1957 in Ames. Mary enjoyed the opportunities of friendship in Ames, and reluctantly moved with Willard to Littleton, CO when he accepted a job at an oil company research lab in 1959. Cynthia Lunette was born in Colorado in 1961.
In 1962, Willard accepted a position at the Iowa State University Physics Department, and the family enjoyed their subsequent life in Ames, which also included many vacations to the west in summer months. During this time, she accompanied Willard on several trips to Europe (the entire family enjoying a year in Geneva and Stockholm) and Israel. Mary had professional work at the Ames Laboratory (in the Purchasing Department) and as an Assistant Librarian at the Ames Middle School.
In 1976, another opportunity enticed Mary and Willard to move to Los Alamos, NM (and later to Santa Fe). In Santa Fe, she served as docent at the Museum of International Folk Art. In addition to these activities, Mary was a devoted, mother and family partner.
During her time in New Mexico, Mary became an avid hiker and bicyclist with a women's group from Los Alamos. She bicycled over every major mountain pass in Colorado during fall week-long trips ("Aspencades") in the Colorado, Wyoming and northern New Mexico mountains, as well as backpacked into many of southern Utah's wilderness areas, mountains in Colorado, and the Grand Canyon in Arizona. She also enjoyed traveling with Willard on trips to Europe, New Zealand, Japan and China.
After nearly 30 years in the Santa Fe, NM area, Mary and Willard moved to Ames (for three years), then Bozeman, MT (for four years), and back to Ames in 2011.
Mary was preceded in death by her parents and many beloved aunts, uncles and cousins. She will be greatly missed by her children: Marc (Maren Thorpe) in Santa Fe, NM; Ken (Janice Breitling) in Ames, IA; Linda (Dan Canton) in Monona, IA; and Cynthia (Tom Maxwell) in Worthington, MN; as well as her husband of 61 years, Willard; brother Max Williams (Doris) of Salt Lake City, UT; and (older) half-sisters Clarissa Farnsworth and Barbara (Norman) Roduner, both in the Portland, OR vicinity. Also grieving her loss are 10 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren. She leaves behind a legacy of special friendships along with her loving family.
In lieu of flowers, please give a gift in Mary's name to the Israel Family Hospice House.