Mary graduated from the Watertown High School (Jefferson County, NY).  She was the salutatorian of the Class of 1932.  She attended secretarial training school and worked in that capacity for many years.  She was the secretary to the owner of AM radio station WATN in Watertown for many years.  When the owner became ill, Mary took over the management of the radio station.  When he subsequently passed away, she, along with her brother Donald, oversaw the sale of the station.

Mary also ran her own business, Preference Foods, later renamed Superior Products for many years.  She started the business around 1955 when her father suffered a stroke and was given 6 months to live.  As a believer in natural healing and health foods, Mary regulated his diet.  He lived for over 5 years.  When friends and family members saw the success, her business took off.  It was the first health food store in Watertown.  She ran the business until 2002 when she closed it due to the onset of Alzheimer's.  She was 88 at that time.

As her condition worsened, she moved in with a family that had been watching over her.  She was later moved to a nursing home.  It is interesting to note that until these moves, she had lived in the same home her entire life.  She was born and raised in the old Schryver homestead at 742 Morrison Street in Watertown.  Both of her parents died in 1959 and she inherited the home along with her two brothers, John Howard and Donald.  Since it was her home, Donald signed his share over to them.  Howard married a few years later and moved into his wife's home.  He moved back in with Mary following his wife's death in 1972 and lived there until his death in 1986.

Mary suffered a fall on December 24, 2006 that broke her hip.  She passed away on January 16, 2007 at the age of 92.  She is buried in the North Watertown Cemetery.

A small stone marks Mary and her brother Howard's graves

Mary Elizabeth Schryver was never married.

This photo at the right is not identified but it was found with other old family pictures.  We are quite confident that it was Mary as an infant.  The photo below is definitely her, probably in her late teens or early 20's.

These two pictures of Mary were found in some old family records after her death