Remembering Mary

       Mary Helen Heebner was my friend and neighbor for 16 years. Since her death on November 29,2002,
I have been reflecting on what a special person she was. Her passions were art, gardening and music and
she shared her talents with the community.

She took an active interest in Lake Helen. The thing is, she was so modest.

       This tall, frail white haired woman never thought of herself as exceptional in any way. While she was turning out drawing after beautiful drawing of some of the Lake Helen's old homes for our biennial historic home tours, she brushed aside compliments, tossing her head and saying, "Anyone can do this!" If Mary had written her memoirs, they undoubtedly would have been understated.

       It was not easy to thank Mary for her contribution. On one occasion the Home Tour committee wanted to thank Mary in a special way. It was strawberry time, so a strawberry social was planned with Mary as the honoree. Owners of all the homes that had been on tour plus other admirers of Mary's work were invited. Her drawings were on display. The morning of the event, Mary asked if it was really necessary for her to be there. Reluctantly she said she would come and she did--just as the guests were about to leave.

       Her drawings are a priceless legacy. They offer a pictorial history of Lake Helen's early years (many of them are framed and hang in Hopkins Hall.) However, Mary was pleased with a plaque that was presented to her just this past year given by the Home Tour committee honoring her for her work over the years. The plaque was presented to her informally. She was asked to come to Hopkins Hall for a photo session. She appeared on the date requested and expressed surprise that no one but the photographer was there. She thought it was to be a formal presentation. When the picture taking was over, she walked out to the middle of the empty hall, curtsied, smiled, raised her voice and said, "I want to thank each and every one of you for coming."

         As Don Waldrop, a new neighbor, declared, "We lost a great one."

         Mary Helen Heebner was not a shrinking violet! She had lived and worked in many countries around the world as a long time member of the Federal Civil Service before coming to Lake Helen from Jacksonville in 1987.

         Mary was confident. She was fiercely independence. She lived her life her way. She was a very private person and seldom spoke of her life before she came to Lake Helen. She was spunky--even feisty, talented, friendly, compassionate, stubborn, generous, funny .... I have the feeling if Mary were here she would be grinning at my attempt to capture her essence with words.

        Her sister-in-law, Mrs. Bette Bird Heebner, when asked, said she really didn't know how Mary had found Lake Helen. "We had hoped Mary would settle near us in Glenwood and did not know of her interest in Lake Helen until she showed us the deed to her house." She noted Mary's mother had had a home at Lake Winnimisset

       In addition to Mrs. Heebner, Mary is survived by her brother, Robert; nephews Peter B. Heebner, Daytona Beach; and Robert Stanley Heebner III, DeLand and niece Pamela Davis, Longwood. Mary was born in Lansdale, Pa.

        Mary was a serious gardener.. Her own garden, which borders her lawn and runs down to the lake, is a delight for birds, squirrels and humans alike. But not ducks! Mary's love for animals stopped short of the ducks that inhabit Lake Helen.. My impression is that Mary had at least one plant of everything that will grow in Central Florida in her garden, Interested in ecology, she bought a yellow canoe so that she could join Oscar Brock in monitoring the water of the lake.

       Mary's small neat house on Lakeview Drive with its lovely garden will remain in the family, Mrs. Heebner said.

       Mary was a leader in the Lake Helen Garden Club, sharing her knowledge and expertise. She planned programs, field t rips She worked hard but made it all seem easy. Member Carole Carter likes to tell of the time she was driving past the garden club's park, Asa Gray Park.

       Carole saw Mary's parked car, She stopped to say hello but was unable to locate Mary. Finally she spotted a pair of feet under one of the park's huge azalea bushes. The feet were Mary's; she was on her hands and knees, weeding.

        Trees were a passion. One year, she donated one of the large, beautiful red cedars growing on her property for the community Christmas tree. It was a real challenge for the city crew to haul that tree to Blake Park. In another instance, she was impatient that her many suggestions that the city plant a shade tree in front of Hopkins Hall were not heeded. She bought two young oak trees; one was planted in her yard and the other tree she gave to the city to be planted at Hopkins Hall.

        Trimming the lower branches from a tree was a strict "no-no' This action, which she considered detrimental to the tree, spurred her to action. She would approach the culprit with the saw and demand, "what could you be thinking?" If the response to her complaint was unfriendly, Mary would wonder aloud, "Why do you suppose he got so mad?"

       Another of her joys was the Tuesday Morning Crafty Ladies. On most Tuesdays she would join that group of talented women at least for awhile to watch them work and to keep up with what was going on.. She enjoyed the companionship and it also helped her to keep an eye on important issues in her town These included water, conservation and growth.. You could truly say, "she cared."

Carole Carter noted, "Mary was 85, but she never stopped living, she took an active interest in all that was around her."

Mary, indeed, was a special lady.