Mary Blackburn

Mary Ann (Carver) Blackburn was born to Harry and Merle Carver on October 28, 1964 in Wilmington, California at around 1am.  Mary Ann was an easy child to care for and loved to care for others.  From the time she was thirteen months old she was trying to care of her baby sister Cathy.  When her brother Glen was born five years later her mom couldn’t keep him in the bassinet because she wanted to care for him and a few years later when her other brother, Jon was born she cared for him too.  Caring for others came natural to Mary Ann, and as a young teen when she read a book about nurses she fell in love with the idea of being a nurse when she grew up.

The family had relocated to Harry’s childhood home near Clinton, Kentucky in 1970 where she would spend her school years.  Mary Ann was not a natural student and had to work hard to learn to read.  She attended Clinton Elementary and then Fulton City schools. She graduated Fulton City High School in May 1982. Later that year she started at Baptist School of Nursing in Memphis, Tennessee where she graduated in May of 1985 as a Registered Nurse. While at nursing school, her dorm mother, Mark’s Aunt Pat, introduced her to her future husband William Mark Blackburn on March 10, 1984 and they married on May 10, 1986, in Memphis, TN. They lived many places throughout their marriage including Memphis, Texarkana, TX, Lexington, KY, St. Louis, MO, Amarillo, TX and Clarksburg, MD. They were blessed with four children Amy, Bethany, Todd and David.

Mary Ann is survived by her husband William Mark Blackburn of Clarksburg, MD, Amy (Blackburn) Perkins and her husband Tanner of Amarillo, TX along with Mary Ann’s two grandchildren Adelaide and Emery.  Other adult children include Bethany Blackburn, Todd Blackburn and David Blackburn also of Clarksburg, Maryland. Her mother, Merle Carver resides in Claremore, OK along with her sister Cathy Carver. Also survived by Glen and Teresa Carver of Montpelier, VA along with their children Samuel and Lauren as well as Jon and Lisa Carver of Fort Worth, TX along with their children Simon and Isis.  She was preceded in death by her father Harry Carver.

Mary Ann’s love for caring for others led her from her nursing career to compassion ministry through most of the churches they made home.  Mary Ann was known for elaborate, interactive children’s lessons where she introduced them to the wonders of the stories of the Bible.  She was heavily involved in compassion ministry for those in need like immigrants, single mothers, and homeless persons. She served in Qual Creek Baptist Church and Peoples Church both of Amarillo, TX.  Her most recent position was Children’s Director at Greenridge Baptist Church of Boyds, MD. Besides her love of her family and caring for others, she loved camping and travel and visited every lighthouse she could.

The family will receive friends at the Greenridge Baptist Church, 21925 Frederick Road Boyds, MD 20841 on Saturday, January 9, 2021 from 10:00 am to 11:00 a.m. The funeral service will follow and will be Livecast starting at 11am EST on GreenridgeBaptist.org. The family asks that any donations be sent to the Blackburn Memorial Fund at Greenridge via www.GreenridgeBaptist.org or the church address on the website. Cards can be mailed to Mark Blackburn at 6001 Moon St NE, Albuquerque, NM 87111 and calls and texts can be made to the family at 240 780 6947.