Elm Valley, NY - Mary B. Burgess, 79, of 3596 County Road 12, died on Thursday March 30, 2017, at the Wellsville Manor Care Center following a brief illness. She was born on October 16, 1937 in Ulysses, PA, the daughter of Eddie and Maude (Patterson) Butler. On October 13, 1961 in Wellsville she married John A. Burgess who survives.
Mary was raised in Ulysses and was a graduate of Northern Potter High School.
She was employed as the office manager for Forrest Allen Insurance Company in Wellsville and later was a bookkeeper for Chapman’s Furniture in Genesee, PA. Mary and John owned and operated the Quaker State Gas Station in Genesee from 1977 to 1989.
In 1989 the family moved to Florida, where Mary played a vital role in raising her grandchildren. She also volunteered at the Spruce Creek Elementary School in Port Orange, Florida. She and John returned to Elm Valley in 2000 and have been very involved in the lives of their great grandchildren. She enjoyed knitting, sewing, birdwatching and raising exotic birds.
Surviving in addition to her husband is a son, Andy Burgess of San Francisco, CA and a daughter, Patty Empson of Elm Valley, two grandchildren, Natasha (Jarod) Ott and Jennifer (Jacob) Kurk and two great grandchildren, Jacob J. Kurk Jr. and Destiny R. Empson.
A private memorial service is being planned for a later date. Please consider memorial donations to the Andover Volunteer Ambulance Squad. To leave online condolences, please visit www.embserfuneralhome.com.