Cover photo for Mary Harding's Obituary
Mary Harding Profile Photo
1935 Mary 2021

Mary Harding

May 3, 1935 — March 2, 2021

Mary Irene Harding, 85, passed away Tuesday March 2, 2021 after a brief illness.  Mary was born May 3, 1935 to Joseph Vincent Quirk and Gertrude Irene Quirk (Peterson) in Boston Massachusetts. Mary was the second of three children.

After completing High School at Archbishop Cushing High School in 1953, Mary went on to Saint Elizabeth’s School of Nursing and in 1956 graduated and began work as a registered nurse. In 1957 she married James Gerard Harding Jr., a boy from the neighborhood she had known most of her life, after he returned to Boston after serving in the military. They were married for 63 years until his death in October of 2020.

Jim worked for the Lever Brothers Company in Cambridge Massachusetts and in 1960 when the Cambridge plant closed they relocated their young family to Maryland. Mary and Jim had 4 children and lived in Glen Burnie Maryland for 60 years in the Sun Valley neighborhood.

Mary was active in her kids’ lives, serving as class mother to several of her children. She was a Brownie leader for 12 years from 1965 to 1977. Mary’s faith was an important element in her life. She loved bible studies and was an active member of the Church of the Crucifixion in Glen Burnie. She often volunteered to assist the church and was a member of the Senior Ministries.

She is proceeded in death by her husband James Gerard Harding Jr., her parents Joseph Vincent Quirk and Gertrude Irene Quirk (Peterson) and her son James Joseph Harding. Mary is survived by her brother Joseph Thomas Quirk and her sister Diane Bridget Crain, her children Ellen Marie Horne, Thomas Richard Harding and Mary Joan Bowen, her grandchildren Laura Horne, Jane Gillespie, Joseph Horne, Ryan Horne, Kaylynn Harding, Hannah Harding, Nicholas Bowen, and Drew Bowen, her great grandchildren: James Gillespie, Ava Gillespie, and Olivia Horne.

Family and friends are invited to visit the family and pay their respects at the family owned and operated McCULLY-POLYNIAK FUNERAL HOME 3204 Mountain Road Pasadena, Maryland 21122 on Sunday March 7, 2021 from 2 to 5 PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday March 8, 2021 at 12 PM at Christ the King Church (Holy Trinity Catholic Church) 7436 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. Glen Burnie, Maryland 21061. The Interment at Crownsville Veteran Cemetery will be for immediate family only. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation in the name of Mary Irene Harding to The American Cancer Society.

To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Mary Harding, please visit our flower store.

Service Schedule

Past Services

24 Hour Viewing

Sunday, March 7, 2021

Starts at 2:00 pm (Eastern time)

McCully Polyniak & Collins Funeral Home

3204 Mountain Rd, Pasadena, MD 21122

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Funeral Mass

Monday, March 8, 2021

Starts at 12:00 pm (Eastern time)

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