Elizabeth (Pollard) Jary

Elizabeth Carol Jary of Livonia, Michigan passed away June 30, 2024 at the age of 96.  She was born December 26, 1927 in Detroit, Michigan to Alfred and Ann Pollard.  Beloved wife of the late Eugene.  Loving mother of Ruth (Michael) Hayes, Eugene (Karen) Jary, Mark (Theresa) Jary, the late Maureen Jary, Michael (Maura) Jary, Patrick (Rebecca Bernard – fiancée) Jary, and Elizabeth (Robert) Krakowiak.  Dearest grandmother of Carrie (Joseph) DiFranco, Michael (Jessica) Hayes, Mandy (William) Adam, Melissa (Ryan) Byrd, Jennifer (Garry) Penta, Andrew (Lauren) Jary, Jessica (Brian) Franklin, Rose Jary, Patrick Jary, Maria Jary, Maureen Jary, Joseph Krakowiak, and Matthew Krakowiak.  Dear great-grandmother of Veronica, Mary, Joseph, Serafina, Vincent, Sophia, Abigail, Charlotte, Colin, Joshua, Olivia, Jacob, and Callan.  Elizabeth was predeceased by her parents and her siblings Shirley (Doug) Reaume and Mary (John) Demmitt. 

Elizabeth was the youngest of 3 girls, preceded by her sisters Shirley and Mary. Reminiscent of the encounter between Mary and her cousin Elizabeth in the Visitation, she grew up on St. Mary’s Street, belonged to St. Mary’s Parish, and attended its parish school.

After graduating from high school in 1946, Elizabeth joined the convent of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters, but due to restrictions about seeing her family during that first year, became quite homesick and left the order. She attended the University of Detroit, where she saw her future husband on the steps of a campus building, and the rest was history. Married on August 26, 1950, they began a family right away, their first child arriving in May of 1951.  Six children followed, with the last two being born 16 and 19 years after the first. Elizabeth had some concerns about being the only mother in their classrooms with gray hair. With deep sorrow and trust in the Lord, Elizabeth endured the loss of her daughter Maureen to leukemia at the age of 8. People at the visitation were heard to comment that it was Elizabeth reaching out to comfort them instead of the other way around.

Elizabeth and her husband Gene enjoyed square dancing, and their children sometimes accompanied them to the dance halls. She never lost her love of the Big Band sound of Glenn Miller. In her later years after the death of her husband, Elizabeth could sometimes be found dancing alone in her living room. 

Elizabeth was a woman of deep faith.  After her children were grown, she attended daily Mass whenever she could. She had a beautiful voice and sang in the parish choir for many years.  She served as an extraordinary minister of the Eucharist at her parish and at Garden City Hospital for many years. Because she regularly contributed to various charities, her mailbox was always full of requests for additional donations. In her later years, most of her morning would be devoted to prayer, and she was able to receive the Eucharist each day, brought to her by a family member in a pyx. One of her favorite prayers was “Little White Guest”, on the back of a treasured holy card.

Elizabeth loved the majesty of mountain scenery and enjoyed traveling to the Canadian Rockies and Sedona with her husband. She visited many of the national parks and enjoyed a “Country Roads of Bavaria, Austria, and Switzerland” trip in 2012, during which she was able to visit some of the locations where one of her favorite movies, “The Sound of Music”, was filmed.  She was much less impressed with the Grand Canyon, calling it “just a big hole in the ground.”

Elizabeth was quite a fashionista. She enjoyed shopping for clothes to fit her petite frame, keeping up with the latest hairstyles, and accessorizing with silver jewelry, especially dangling earrings. She was content with her graying hair until one day when she was out with her mother and was mistaken for her because of her graying hair.  From that day on, she colored her hair. 

Elizabeth remained a fiercely independent woman till the end.  She lived alone in her own home till her death, and she managed her affairs with determination and a sharp mind, knowing which of her children or in-laws, depending on their skills and abilities, to call on for assistance in various areas.  She was fortunate to have her children nearby, which she considered one of her greatest blessings. Her presence in our lives will be greatly missed, but we take comfort in knowing that she is in perfect peace with her Creator and heavenly family.

Visitation Monday, July 8, 2024 from 3-8 PM at Thayer-Rock Funeral Home, 33603 Grand River Avenue, Farmington, Michigan 48335. In state Tuesday, July 9, 2024 from 11 AM until the start of Mass at 11:30 AM at St. Kenneth Catholic Church, 14951 N. Haggerty Rd, Plymouth, Michigan 48170. Interment will follow at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Southfield, Michigan. Memorial contributions to the Capuchins would be appreciated.

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