Jeanne Petty, 81, of Arnold, MD, died March 25, of complications relating to
lung cancer. She was a resident of Arnold for 36 years.

Mrs. Petty was born in 1926 in McKeesport, PA to John and Marteas Maher.
She was raised in Monessen, PA and was graduated from the University of
Pittsburgh in 1946 with a BA in English and a minor in Chemistry. She was a
member of the Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority. She did graduate work at Temple
University.
She worked as a research food chemist at the Heinz Co. Baby Food Division
and later moved to Philadelphia to work at the Pennsylvania Department of
Agriculture as a research chemist. She had several papers published. She
retired to raise her children. She began a second career in the early 1980's
as a realtor. She was associated with Coldwell Banker's Severna Park office
at the time of her last illness.
Mrs. Petty loved to garden and planted thousands of flowers, shrubs and
trees during her lifetime. She devoted much of earlier life supporting her
children's school and extra-curricular activities. She participated in
local Theta events. She enjoyed working the Sunday NY Times crossword
puzzles and mastering Sudoku puzzles. She loved her cats.
Mrs. Petty is survived by her husband of 53 years, Alan; two daughters,
Janice L. Petty of San Jose, CA and Cynthia A. Petty of Berwyn, PA; one son,
Mark F. Petty of Arnold, MD; two sisters, Margie Martin of Scottdale, PA and
Nancy McGervey of Cleveland Heights, OH; one grandson and twelve nieces and
nephews. A sister and brother preceded her in death.
Visitation hours will be held at the Barranco Funeral Home in Severna Park
on Friday, March 28 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will
be offered at St. John the Evangelist, on Ritchie Hwy. in Severna Park on
Saturday, March 29 at 11:00 a.m. Internment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the American
Cancer Society and/or plant some flowers to honor her life.