Mary Elizbeth Conner Mutispaugh, 84, died January 5, 2020 in Duluth, near Atlanta, Georgia after a brief illness.

Mary was born on July 11, 1935 in Rockbridge County to James Erby Conner and Dorothy Virginia Johns.

Her mother was a proud member of the Monacan Indian Nation and a direct descendent of both Mallory Johns and William Evans, both of whom helped to found the Bear Mountain Settlement.

She married Richard (Ike) Mutispaugh on July 23, 1954, became an Army wife and settled in Augusta, Ga., to raise her three children, Richard, Debbie and Donna.

Mary was widowed at 33 years old when Ike passed unexpectedly.

She faced the challenges of being a single parent with the inner strength that she had gained from her farm childhood. She became the matriarch of her family, raising children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren in her home.

Mary is predeceased by her son, Richard Lewis Mutispaugh, and survived by her daughters, Debbie Higgins and Donna Litzinger; her six grandchildren, Ritchie Mutispaugh, Heather Mutispaugh, Kimberly Higgins, Mitchell Greene, Mary Greene and Hilary Litzinger; along with nine great-grandchildren.