Mary Ethel Lancaster-Wasz

Mary (Mel) Lancaster Wasz was born July 28, 1933, in Grosse Point, Michigan, to parents Bruce and Irene (Murphy) Lancaster. She grew up in Port Huron, Michigan, with her two brothers, Bruce Jr. and John Richard (Dick), attending St. Stephens Catholic School where she excelled at both sports and academics. The highlight of her senior year was delivering a rousing speech to an audience of 2,000 people including the local diocese bishop.

After high school, Mary continued her education at Marygrove College, in Detroit. While there, she met her future husband, Glenn Lawrence Wasz, at a school mixer with Notre Dame students. Mary graduated in1955 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, which prepared her for teaching grade school.

After graduation, Mary taught at Ruddiman Middle School, in Detroit, for a year. On November 17, 1956, she married Glenn. They immediately moved to Southern California, where they lived the rest of their lives. She briefly taught school at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary School, in Sun Valley, before the birth of her first child, a son, Greg. Her second and third children were daughters, Pamela and Margot, respectively. In 1965, the family moved to Tustin, California. While raising her children, Mary participated in Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts programs, and supplemented their education with museum visits and trips to visit historic places across the country.

In 1966, Mary briefly attended Chapman College, in Orange, to update her teaching credential. For the next few years, she was a substitute teacher in the local public schools.

At age 39, Mary shifted her focus and began a second career. She enrolled in the prestigious, library science program at California State University, Fullerton. She graduated in 1974 with a master’s degree and was welcomed into the Phi Kappa Phi honor society.

Mary was immediately hired at the main branch of the Orange Public Library, where she worked part time for the next 20 years. She began as a children’s librarian, but finally achieved her dream of being a reference librarian. Mary truly loved helping people find the information they needed in those days before the Internet.

After her retirement, Mary pursued her hobbies in genealogy and stamp collecting. She also had a passion for detective novels, football, Angels baseball and travel.

Mary was a smart, educated, proud woman with a good sense of humor and a feisty Irish temperament. She had a deep attachment to the Roman Catholic faith and put a premium on the happiness of her husband, three children and grandchild. She was proud of her self-sufficiency. Glenn and Mary were married 63 years until his passing in 2019. Mary passed away on January 21, 2022, from natural causes. She leaves her three children and one grandchild, James.

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