Mary L. Bechtel Obituary (1951 - 2016)

Mary L. Bechtel, 64, of Bloomington, passed away at 9:10 p.m. on Tuesday, April 12, 2016 at Heritage Health in Bloomington.Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 16, 2016 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Bloomington, with Monsignor Douglas Hennessy, Rev. R. Anthony Lee and Rev. Jeffery Windy concelebrating. Private interment will be at Holy Cross Cemetery, Normal. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday at Carmody-Flynn Funeral Home, Bloomington, where a prayer service will be held at 7 p.m. Memorials may be made to the Community Cancer Center, Normal. To express condolences online, please visit www.carmodyflynn.com.She was born September 14, 1951 in Springfield, IL, daughter of Durward M. and Betty Jean Gahr Bechtel. Her parents and one brother, Michael Bechtel preceded her in death.Surviving are one daughter, Emily (Edward) Breitweiser of Bloomington and three sisters, Marcea (Jeff) Ross of Lake Zurich, Melissa (Gary) Hopkins of Athens and Melinda Bechtel of Florida.Mary received her Masters Degree in Spanish Literature from the University of Iowa and later her Masters Degree in Interior Design from Illinois State University. She taught Spanish at Central Catholic High School for a couple of years before working as the Director of Religious Education at Holy Trinity Catholic Church. Mary worked for Holy Trinity for 10 years and all the way up until the time of her death.She had a great love for the Church and dedicated much of her time to serving the poor and helping anyone in their time of need. Wherever Mary went, she made friends. She will be remembered by those who knew her as always putting others needs ahead of her own. Because of her strong faith and grace, Mary was regarded as a role model by all who knew her. Her family and friends were most important to her; but she especially cherished her time with her beloved daughter and son-in-law, Emily and Eddie.