Mary Jayasuriya passed away on December 29th in Southampton, NJ at the age of 76.  Mary had maintained an independent lifestyle despite ongoing illness and died peacefully in her home.

Mary was born in Deloluwa Sri Lanka, daughter of Herat and Wattegadara Bandara, and joined by her siblings Wimila, Gunasena, Kamala, Irene, Lalitha, Kusum, Sunil, Sujatha, Ranjith, Niel, Upali and Keerthi.  Mary worked as an English teacher in Sri Lanka and had particularly admirable penmanship.  Mary left Sri Lanka in 1965 to the United Kingdom, where Mary worked initially as a nurse and also obtained her printing and art degree from London College of Printing.  In 1972 Mary married Upali Jayasuriya and had two children, Samantha and Tahira in 1974 and 1978, respectfully.

In 1981 Mary, with her husband and children, moved to the United States, living in Ohio, Connecticut and New Jersey.  In the United States, Mary worked as an insurance rater until her retirement. 

Throughout her journeys, Mary had maintained many life-long friends from her 15 years in the United Kingdom, along with several close friends in the United States.  Mary also kept in touch with her heritage and family in Sri Lanka through yearly visits during the winter season.

Mary also had three grandchildren, Gabriel, Ariya and William, whom she adored.  Mary loved spending holidays with and listening to stories from her grandchildren, and often enjoyed reading books to them or sitting outside with them.

Mary loved going to the ocean, being outside in nature, sharing time with family and friends, telling and sharing jokes, travelling, cooking healthy food and writing frequent cards to close family and friends.  Over the past few years, Mary never missed a beat on sending a loving card, whether it be for Christmas, Valentine’s day or a birthday. Her cards were always the most welcome surprise.

Mary will be missed deeply by her friends and family. Mary shared this message around the time of her passing: “To my Wonderful Friends and Family:  May your troubles be less, and your blessings be more, and nothing but happiness, come through your door.”