Mary Joanne Wentworth

March 14, 1940 - December 8, 2020

Mary Joanne Wentworth— devoted wife, mother, and catholic, of Clare, passed away Tuesday, December 8th, at the age of 80. Mary was born in Bay City, MI, on March 14th, 1940, and grew up in Midland. She graduated from Midland High School in 1958. When she was 16, she got a job at Dow Chemical, where she worked for 12 years, as a secretary. Mary married Clarence Wentworth, dairy farmer of Clare, on October 12th, 1968. They had five children, Gregory Wentworth (Karey) of Clare, Stephen Wentworth (Jennifer) of Cedar Springs, MI, Anne Schmidt (Karl) of Northampton, PA, Kathleen Fellin (Seth) of Troy, MI, and Matthew Wentworth (Rebecca) of Fraser, MI. Mary loved to travel, spending nearly a month in Europe in 1966. After marriage, she took her family across much of the United States, visiting many of America’s national parks. Mary loved to cook big dinners, hosting birthdays, holidays, and many other get-togethers, for her large extended family. She was a lifelong Catholic, as a member of St. Brigid’s in Midland, and later St. Cecilia’s in Clare. She had a strong belief in the power of prayer. Mary is preceded in death by her parents, Theodore and Mary (Ludwig) Nowak, and sisters Therese Nowak and Carol Nowak. She is survived by her husband and children, as well as siblings Richard Nowak, Daniel Nowak (Linda) Bernadette Gromaski (David), Kathleen Davis (Steven), and David Nowak, as well as her 15 grandchildren: Scott, Trisha, Veronica, Kaitlyn, Westley, Hunter, Nicholas, Anastasia, Gabriel, Lilian, Elijah, Haley, Alexis, Ronald, and Angelina. A funeral mass will take place in Mary’s honor on Tuesday, December 15, 2020 at the St. Cecilia Site of the Our Lady of Hope Parish in Clare at 10:30 A.M. with Monsignor Francis Koper officiating. Burial will follow in the St. Cecilia Catholic Cemetery of Clare. Visitation for Mary will take place at the Clare Chapel of the Stephenson-Wyman Funeral Home on Monday, December 14, from 5:00 P.M to 8:00 P.M., with a 7:00 P.M. Rosary Service. Memorial contributions in honor of Mary may be directed toward the Our Lady of Hope Parish—St. Cecilia Site. Current Covid-19 guidelines will be in effect for both visitation and funeral services. For those unable to attend, online condolences for Mary may be shared on her tribute page at www.stephenson-wyman.com