Mary McLernon Obituary

Mary Margaret (nee Costello) McLernon CHARLESTON - Mary Margaret McLernon (ne;e Costello) passed peacefully from this world on Friday, December 7th, 2018 in her home, surrounded by her devoted family. Mary Margaret was born May 6, 1938 in Jersey City, NJ. She was raised in New Jersey and was a 1959 graduate of the Holy Name Hospital School of Nursing (Teaneck). She spent the middle part of her adult life in Ohio. In 1988 Mary Margaret was a founder of the Dublin Ohio Irish Festival, a musical and cultural celebration which now attracts over 100,000 visitors each year in August. Mary Margaret moved to Charleston, SC in 1995 where she was a generous supporter of the arts, education and her faith. Mary Margaret owned Fuchsia Tea Room and Gallery on Church Street in Charleston. She is survived by her four children; Chris (Lisa) McLernon, Sean (Gillian) McLernon, Bridget (Sean) McLernon Sykes and Mary Kate McLernon as well their father (ex-husband) Lawrence McLernon. She was very proud of her 11 grandchildren: Delaney and Graham McLernon, Mackie and Shea McLernon, Fiona, Ailish and Declan Sykes, Caitlin Jacobs (ne;e Peterson), Jake Peterson, Marisa and Ethan Henthorn, two great-grandchildren as well as a host of nieces, nephews and cousins. Mary Margaret was the loving sister of Claire Cardella (Thomas), Rose Kelly (Jim), Kevin Costello (Anne) and Ruthie Johnson (Terry). Mary Margaret is preceded in death by her daughter Aileen McLernon Reineck, her parents Thomas P. and Mary M. Costello, her brother Thomas P. Costello and her sister Kathie Shanahan. Mary Margaret found joy in her connections with family, her relationships with friends and in travelling the world, especially when those journeys took her to Ireland. She will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved her. A funeral mass will be celebrated at Mepkin Abbey Church in Moncks Corner, SC. Should friends desire to make a gift, memorial contributions can be made to Mepkin Abbey, the American Cancer Society, and/or the Community Hospices of America Foundation. Visit our guestbook at www.legacy.com/obituaries/ charleston