Mary Ann Blakeney, 85 of Monticello, MS passed away Friday, June 28, 2024 at the Halo Havens in Brookhaven, MS. She was born Wednesday, December 14, 1938 in Silver Creek, Mississippi.

Visitation will be held on Monday, July 1, 2024 from 6:00 PM until 9:00 PM at Wilson Funeral Home in 904 W. Thomas E. Jolly Drive, Monticello, MS. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, 07/02/2024 at 10:00 at Monticello Methodist Protestant Church in Monticello, MS. Burial will follow in Bethshan Cemetery in Monticello, MS. Bro. Kenneth Carden will officiate. Wilson Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. 601-587-2573

Ann went by many names, such as Mama, Granny, and Miss Ann, and she was loved by all. She kept busy, particularly with her hands. She sewed, cooked, and spent long hours in the garden. She rose early and expected the same of others, much to the chagrin of her grandchildren. With early mornings, though, came rewards, generally in the form of food. Orange biscuits were a house specialty, as were Mickey Mouse pancakes. Everyone was kept full, all the time.

Ann made the most of every day, not all of which entailed, as she called it, piddling. She loved being a member of the Women's Garden Club of Lawrence County, where she helped beautify the town. As an expert conversationalist, she enjoyed the company of family and friends. She could talk to anyone, anywhere, but was especially at home with a cup of coffee on the big porch off Brookhaven Street or the sunroom on Fortenberry.

She was born on Wednesday, December 14, 1938, to Eugene Charles Brister and Lucy Virgie Boyd Brister, in Silver Creek, Mississippi.

Some years later, as a young woman, while crossing the street in Monticello, Mississippi, a young man called down to her from an open window. She would marry that young man, Ben Russell Blakeney, on March 13, 1957, and the pair would go on to have three children who they would raise in a small brick house on Halls Creek. When one day the creek rose, and the house flooded, Ann and Ben bought the home on Brookhaven Street, with the big front porch, where the children of their children would spend many days of their formative years, eating orange biscuits with their grandmother.

Until her health declined, she was an active member her entire adult life at the Monticello Methodist Protestant Church, where she enjoyed her Sunday School class and the Women's Missionary Society. She was willing to help in various ministries, including volunteering at Vacation Bible School.

Ann was preceded in death by her husband, Ben; father, Eugene; mother, Virgie; father-in-law, Butch Blakeney; and mother-in-law, Minnie Blakeney.

She is survived by her son, Brad Blakeney (Janie) of Monticello, Mississippi; daughters, Bridget Blakeney Fraysier (Billy) of Monticello, Mississippi, and Amy Blakeney of Deatsville, Alabama; her grandchildren, Kara Blakeney, Aaron Blakeney (Taylor), Byron Fraysier (Kaitlin), and Brent Fraysier (Amelia); and her great-grandchildren, John Blakeney, Harper Fraysier, Caroline Fraysier, George Blakeney, and Case Fraysier.

Pallbearers will be Aaron Blakeney, Byron Fraysier, Brent Fraysier, and Scott Barber, Andy Tynes, Mike McKennon, John Blakeney and George Blakeney.

Honorary pallbearers will be Jody Reid, Johnny Reid, and Rob Alford.

An online guestbook may be signed at www.wilsonfuneralhomemonticello.com