Mary Margaret (Edlen) Tayloe of Cuba, Mo., wife of Jack Lee Tayloe, entered into eternal rest peacefully Friday morning, Oct. 26, 2018.
Visitation for family and friends will be held starting at 9 a.m., Saturday, Nov. 3, 2018, at the Gottenstroeter Chapel, 108 South Second Street in Owensville, Mo. The service will follow at 11 a.m., and graveside service will be held at noon at the Oak Hill Cemetery.
Mary was born Sept. 28, 1936, to Harold and Louise (Fox) Edlen of Kahoka, Mo. She was raised in Kahoka and later met Jack Tayloe while attending Central Methodist University in Fayetteville, Mo. Jack was the local college photographer and Mary was smitten by his warm smile and friendly spirit. On Dec. 24, 1954, the two were united in marriage in a small church in Luray, Mo. They were married for 64 years.
Like her mother, Mary decided to become a teacher. She started when she was only 18. Her favorite was teaching second grade with her longest terms being in Cambridge, Iowa and later in Owensville, Mo. She had the opportunity to teach all three of her own children. Throughout her years as a teacher she stood apart from the others by offering special experiences to her students. Every day after lunch she read books. Tom Sawyer, The Wizard of Oz and Heidi were a few of her favorites. The children could hardly wait for the next post-lunch chapter to be read. And each fall in Cambridge, she hosted three students a night to stay with her family in the house in the woods. Each night our family would have new guests. It was a fun treat for our family and the kids alike. Later she transitioned to hosting an annual field trip through the woods. She opened their eyes to the world of nature which they may never have experienced before. And every year she cut Christmas socks out of white felt and gave each child a set to sew together and decorate with Christmas trees, stars, packages and train sets. The students had never known about sewing until this event, and it was a special gift to bring home to their parents for the holidays. Her teacher friends loved and adored her.
Also like her mother, Mary was very adventurous. In the mid 70’s, they took a two-week bus tour through Switzerland, Norway, Morocco, Germany, France and Belgium. The two of them brought home many gifts and shared hours and hours (and hours) of slides. It was something that she never forgot.
The two saddest days in Mary’s life were when her mother passed and when she retired from teaching after 43 years.
Mary lived to be 82 years old, most of which she spent time traipsing through the farm with her husband, kids and grandchildren, scouring the creeks for arrowheads, working the cattle farm, creating a kennel full of purebred championship cockers, raising Persian cats and hitting weekend garage sales.
A happier, caring and more fun person to be around will never be found.
The last few years of her life, an ugly disease grabbed a hold of her mind and she was ever so slowly brought down. During this time, her loving husband, Jack, set aside all other activities and personally cared and attended to her. It was a difficult time, but through the hardship, it was clear that Jack dearly loved her. The nurses around referred to them as the “two love birds.” He was the one person in her life that was there for her until the very end.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Harold and Louise (Fox) Edlen and son, Joseph Morris Tayloe.
She is survived by her husband, Jack Tayloe; children, Dan Tayloe and wife Vicki of Phoenix, Ariz., Edward Tayloe and wife Mary Ann of Johnston, Iowa and Jeanette Lawson and husband Shawn of James Island, S.C.; brothers, Jack Edlen and wife Nancy and Joe Edlen and wife Ann, all of Kahoka; and seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
