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Longtime F.C. Resident Mary Kay Cheek Dies at 80

MARY KAY CHEEK

Mary Kay (Rutt) Cheek, 80, longtime resident of the City of Falls Church, passed away on Saturday, July 20, at the Hospice House in Charlottesville, with her husband of 59 years at her side.

Mary Kay was born on April 30, 1939, in Sterling, Illinois, the daughter of the late Raymond Orville and Gladys Marie (Kosier) Rutt.

She grew up in Evanston, Illinois and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from DePauw University in Indiana. She married her high-school sweetheart, Paul Cheek, in 1960.

Mary Kay and Paul moved to Falls Church in 1965, where they raised their four children on Seaton Circle. Mary Kay was active in the community and enriched many lives through her involvement as a scout leader, art teacher to adults and children, preschool and elementary school teacher and Sunday school teacher at Falls Church Presbyterian Church.

In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her first child, Paul, who died at birth.

Survivors include her husband Paul Armstrong Cheek of Palmyra; her children: Katherine Adele Williams (Matthew), Sarah Marie Barth (Kristopher), Joseph Merritt Cheek (Suzanne), Mary Elizabeth Pincombe (Matthew) and 11 grandchildren: Adam Barth, Olivia Pincombe, Joseph Barth, Abigail Cheek, Grace Cheek, Erin Barth, Paul Pincombe, Jacob Williams, Dalia Williams, Owen Cheek and Lily Cheek.

A funeral service was held on July 24, 2019 at South Plains Presbyterian Church in Keswick, Virginia.

A Celebration of Life service will be held on Friday, Aug. 16 at 2 p.m. at the Falls Church Presbyterian Church (225 E. Broad St., Falls Church). All are welcome to attend to share stories and remembrances of Mary Kay.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of the Piedmont (www.hopva.org).

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