Mary Jean King, 89, of Hyde Park, passed away September 13 at her home. Mrs. King, a life-long resident of Dutchess County, graduated from Poughkeepsie High School in 1944 and became a ticket agent and telegrapher for New York Central Railroad where she worked until 1955. She had a great love of reading and instilled that same love in her children, and always found time to read to them every night. She made childhood wonderful for her children! Each of them remembers tiptoeing down the stairs to the magic that was Christmas Day, her enthusiastic participation in the creation of Halloween costumes, the special foods that would be made without fail on holidays, the endless patience in taking up and letting down hems for the back to school dresses in late August. She had a very nice touch for drawing, and valued imagination and creativity. Mrs. King also loved birdwatching, and the Hudson River.
Born in Poughkeepsie on January 6, 1927, she was a daughter of Guy and Gertrude
Rappleyea, On August 5, 1950, at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Poughkeepsie, she married John R. King, a former Dutchess County District Attorney and County Court Judge; Judge King predeceased her in 1993.
Surviving are her son Michael King, Esq. (Beth Anne), daughters Mary Williams (Greg),
Kathryn King, Susan Boersema (Kenneth), Lisa King, grandchildren Elizabeth, Erica,
Jonathan, Alicia, Kenneth, Susan and Melanie, and great-grandchildren Lola, Delilah
and John Joseph. She is also survived by her sisters Kay O’Leary and Nancy
Rappleyea and many nieces and nephews. She was also predeceased by five sons,
John R. III, Peter, James, Robert and Joseph, one grandson, Michael Ciaccio and three brothers, Monsignor Robert Rappleyea, Guy Rappleyea, Esq. and Allan E. Rappleyea, Esq.
Visitation will be Monday, September 19, 2016, 4-8 PM at the Wm. G. Miller & Son Funeral home, Inc., 371 Hooker Ave., Poughkeepsie, NY 12603. A Mass Of Christian Burial will be Tuesday, September 20, 2016, at 10AM in St. Mary's Church, 231 Church St., Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. Burial will follow in the family plot in St. Peter's Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to: The Transplantation and Immune Cell Therapy Lab at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY 10065. If you wish to send an online condolence please visit our website at www.wmgmillerfuneralhome.com

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