On Sunday, July 10, 2022, Mary Ellen Lenz (McLean) passed away at the age of 76 in her home in Valencia, California.
She was born on Dec. 15, 1945 in Margaretville, to John and Lillian McLean, and was raised on their dairy farm on Dingle Hill in the Catskill Mountains, where she obtained her lifelong love for Jersey cows. In 1963, she climbed Mount Katahdin, the highest mountain in the state of Maine. She was a 1964 graduate of Andes Central School and went on to attend the University of Rochester for two years. She finished her degree at Kansas State University and graduated in 1968.
Mary Ellen married John Lenz on June 12, 1966, and is survived by him, her son, Gilbert Lenz and daughter-in-law, Miriam Hallbauer, her daughter, Amanda Robinette and son-in-law Christopher Robinette, and her two grandchildren, Sabrina and Colin Robinette. She is also survived by her two sisters, Joan Agrawal and Nancy Roney.
She enjoyed spending time with her family and was a loving and considerate mother and grandmother. She enjoyed baking and cooking for her family and her many friends.
Mary Ellen worked at Rush Medical College in Chicago from 1983 to 2008 and retired in 2015 at UC San Diego. She then moved to Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania to be near her daughter and grandchildren, then moved again with her family in 2021 to Valencia, California.
Mary Ellen was laid to rest in Andes Cemetery in New York on Sept. 3, 2022. The family had a private celebration of her life in place of a traditional funeral service.
In lieu of flowers, she requests that donations be made to Pancreatic Cancer Action Network or the Democrat candidate of your choice.
