Mary Katherine Busse

Mary Katherine Busse, 73, passed away Monday, June 25, 2018, surrounded by her family and three puppies, at her home in Jackson.

Born April 2, 1945 in Minot, North Dakota, to Ben and Gladys Lorenzen Busse, Mary was the third child and oldest daughter.  She was a 1963 graduate of Glenbard East High School in Lombard, Illinois, and a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving honorably from September 26, 1966 to September 25, 1969.

Mary Katherine started college and began Army training at Brook Army Hospital in San Antonio, Texas.  In 1966, she transferred to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D. C., working there until her discharge in 1969.  In 1971, she became employed at the National Institute of Health, and in 1984, she graduated from Northern Illinois University, briefly teaching school in Springfield, Missouri.  In 1986, she returned to the National Institute of Health, retiring in 2005.

Upon moving to Jackson, she became a member of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Jackson.  She volunteered at the Jackson Ministerial Food Pantry and as a court-appointed special advocate.

Loving survivors include two nieces who she raised as daughters, Emily (Kendal) Green and their son, Cooper Lee Green of Jackson, and Bonnie Busse of Jackson; nine siblings, John “Jack” Busse of Jackson, James (Jan) Busse of Conroe, Texas, Thomas (Jo Ann) Busse of West Bend, Wisconsin, Margaret Yoel of Norfolk, Connecticut, Patricia (Steve) Martin of Harvard, Illinois, Colleen (Russ) Burkart of Rockford, Illinois, Dr. Kathleen (Dr. Douglas) Grove of Jonesboro, Illinois, Ben Busse of Harvard, Illinois, and Theresa Foss of Chicago Ridge, Illinois; 31 additional nieces and nephews; and her canine pals, Snickers, Lt. Dan, and Cookie.

She was preceded in death by her parents.     

Visitation is Thursday, June 28, 2018, from 4 p.m. to 5:45 p.m., at McCombs Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Jackson.  St. Ann’s Sodality will lead a Rosary at 5:45 p.m., immediately followed by military honors. 

Funeral Mass will be Friday, June 29, 2018, at 10 a.m., at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Jackson.

Inurnment is at a later date, at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri. 

Memorials may take the form of contributions to Immaculate Conception Catholic School or the Jackson Ministerial Alliance Food Pantry.

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