Obituary of Mary Maroney Fox

Mary Maroney Fox, 97, loving wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, passed away peacefully with a single tear of joy on November 12, 2022.  Mary was born in Syracuse, New York on June 10, 1925 to Patrick and Mary (Corbett) Maroney.  Mary graduated from St. Patrick’s High School and Syracuse University with a baccalaureate degree in nursing.

 On June 11, 1949, Mary married Cletus Fox from Otisco, New York.  She worked as a hospital nurse, a public health nurse and school nurse at Roosevelt  Junior High School.  Together with Cletus, she raised seven beautiful children in their home on Coleridge Avenue next to Burnet Park.  Christmas Eve was always a special gathering in the Fox home with children and grandchildren coming to visit.  While singing family favorite Christmas carols (with enthusiasm), everyone helped to clean the dishes.

Mary was a volunteer and lifelong communicant of St. Patrick's Church from Baptism through Last Rites.  She was a recipient of its 2005 Irish Heritage Award.   Very proud of her Irish roots, Mary was honored to be named the Grand Marshal of the 2010 Shamrock Run on Tipperary Hill.  The starting line remains in front of the former Fox house on Coleridge Ave.   Her favorite times of the year were the weeks each summer when family visited and gathered on the shores of Otisco Lake and St. Patrick’s Day.  Many joyous renditions of “When Irish Eyes are Smiling” were sung on the porch overlooking the lake.

Mary was predeceased by her parents, her husband Cletus, son Bobby, son-in-law Raymond Zoanetti and daughter-in-law Maureen McCarthy Fox.  She is survived by her seven children, Kathleen Zoanetti, Christine Kratz (Bob), Martin Fox, Eileen Battle (Matt), Vince Fox (Cary), Maureen Fox (Clint Glass), and Susan Ladstatter (Jack), 17 grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 10am Friday, November 18, 2022 at St. Patrick's Church in Syracuse.  Calling hours 5 to 7pm on Thursday, November 17^th at Edward J. Ryan & Son Inc.  Funeral Home, 3180 Bellevue Ave., Syracuse, NY  13219. The Fox family would like to express their gratitude to the staff on the second floor of Elderwood in Liverpool who helped Mary during her final stages of Alzheimer’s disease.  

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a donation be made in Mary’s name to St. Patrick’s / St. Bridget’s Church, 216 N Lowell Ave, Syracuse, NY 13204 or CNY Alzheimer’s Association, 5015 Campuswood Drive, Syracuse, New York 13057.

“To love someone is to learn the song in their heart and sing it to them when they have forgotten it”   We will carry Mary’s songs in our hearts always.

A link to stream the funeral video live can be found here https://m.facebook.com/ascensionvideo?eav=AfbCPx2SRR_3fkWSn0rVKSLOGSchtKD1ZPSE8fJ5bGf_ZfuVVBldzcF6Dp3PVcDXBhg&paipv=0&_rdr