Published in the May 18, 2017 edition
WEBSTER, NY – Mary Jo (Ford) Hohl died at age 59 following a rapid health decline due to multiple myeloma and amyloidosis. Predeceased by her mother Patricia, sister Lisa, in-laws John & Ruth Hohl, sister-in-law Mary Beth (Hohl) Janisse, grandparents Violet & Robert Ford, Agnes & Willard Whitney, Great-Aunt & Great-Uncle Geraldine & John Kelly. She is survived by her husband of 34 years, Lawrence Hohl; children: Patricia (James Wells), Elizabeth (Christopher Svendsen), John (Erin Shambo), Daniel (fiancé Nicole Gilbody), and Michael; father Roy Ford; brothers: Robert (Catherine), Thomas (Lisa), Daniel (Susan), and John (Sandy); sister-in-law Ruth Anne (Jim) Borger; brothers-in-law Robert (Michael Kelly), and Daniel Hohl, Richard (Wendy) Janisse; loving Aunts and Uncle Jacqueline Bleakney, Beverly Lowrey, Barbara & Charles Symonds; cousins, many nieces and nephews, and many many dearly beloved friends.
Born in Charleston, SC on July 21, 1957, Mary Jo lived in North Reading, where she graduated from North Reading High School in 1975. Mary Jo received a Bachelor Degree in Psychology from The College of the Holy Cross in 1979, a Diploma in Nursing from Newton-Wellesley Hospital School of Nursing in 1986, and a Bachelor Degree in Nursing from the University of Rochester in 1992. Mary Jo was a member of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps 1979- 1980, serving as a counselor in a group home in Bethel, Alaska. She was director of the Harvard-Radcliffe Catholic Student Center in Cambridge, MA until entering the nursing profession. Mary Jo held nursing positions in the Rochester area which included labor & delivery, high-risk obstetrics, community health, long-term care, director of care for the uninsured at Mercy Outreach Center, and for the last eight years – school nursing at Schlegel Road Elementary School in Webster. She was an active member of St. Rita Church since relocating to Webster from Cambridge, MA in 1987. An avid supporter of her children’s myriad of activities, Mary Jo was a loyal volunteer with Webster High School Marching Band, Girl Scouts, and Cub/Boy Scouts. She loved to travel, especially to visit or with family, and greeted each sunrise with her motto “Every Day’s an Adventure!”
Family and friends celebrated her life with a wake and Funeral Mass in Webster, NY. A private interment took place at Riverside Cemetery, North Reading, MA. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions in Mary Jo’s memory to the Boston University Amyloid Research Fund and practice random acts of kindness to help the world become a better place for all.
