MaryBeth Elizabeth Fitzgerald

Mary Elizabeth Fowler Fitzgerald, 72, known to her family and friends as Mary Beth Fitzgerald, of Carrollton, Texas, died on February 21, 2024.  Waters Funeral Home and Chapel will oversee the graveside service at the Vandalia Cemetery, Vandalia, Missouri, on May 4, 2024, at 11 am, with Pastor Bob Hoehn, officiant.

Mary Beth was born June 18, 1951, and adopted as an infant by Roy and Bonita “Bonnie” Fowler of Vandalia, Missouri. Bonnie Fowler died in 1957 when Mary Beth was six years old. Mary Beth was raised by Roy and her stepmother, Lenora Fowler, in Vandalia, where the family attended the First Baptist Church. Upon graduation from Van-Far High School, Mary Beth attended Central Missouri State University at Warrensburg and the University of Missouri. Mary Beth married Patrick Fitzgerald on September 4, 1970. They later divorced but remained friends through the years.

Mary Beth’s dynamic personality and her interest in women’s fashion influenced her career choices. She was energetic, dependable, and intelligent and she thrived in the retail business. She advanced quickly from her first job at Neates Fabric Store in Columbia, Missouri, to opening and managing the Fashion Fabrics store in Kansas City. Later, she worked as a department manager at Joske’s, Lord & Taylor, and finally, Bloomingdale’s in Dallas, Texas. Mary Beth subsequently left retail and made a final career change to work as a Senior Account Executive at Bride & Groom magazine in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. She was very involved in the local wedding industry until her retirement in 2018.

Mary Beth was warm, witty, and supportive and had a way of making whomever she was with feel “seen.” Her family, friends, co-workers, and clients received her full attention and she was genuinely interested in their lives; she celebrated their victories and prayed for those who needed support, including them on her church’s prayer list. She made friends everywhere she went and never forgot a person’s name – that was one of her many endearing qualities. Mary Beth was a kind and loyal friend; she always had an open heart, a shoulder to lean on, and an ear to listen and provide comfort.

Mary Beth showed her love and compassion for those around her through her actions. She was a loving daughter and returned to Vandalia often to visit her father, step-mother, and other relatives, making sure they were properly cared for during their twilight years. She mentored many young professionals and guided them to develop successful careers.  She regularly visited the gravesite of her friend’s father to tidy up the space and place flowers on the grave for special occasions. Many of her friends enjoy beautiful, bearded iris blooming in their gardens today as a result of Mary Beth’s green thumb and generosity. Her willingness to share extended to sharing her home and being a devoted mother to the many fur babies she rescued over the years. 

Mary Beth helped numerous adults (who were adopted as children) maneuver through state adoption systems to find their biological parents. Helping adoptees was very important to Mary Beth because she had found her own biological parents and developed a loving relationship with her biological father, Donald E. Chase. 

Mary Beth loved spending time with her friends. Some of her favorite activities included watching “The Bachelor” and sharing her opinion on the latest wacky developments, having long conversations on the phone to catch up on what was going on in her friends’ lives, and eating dinner at El Fenix before driving around the city to admire Christmas lights. 

Mary Beth is survived by her cousin, Justin Travis and wife, Lori, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky; ex-husband, Patrick Fitzgerald; half-brother, Richard Chase; half-sisters, Cindy Czarnowski, Kim Carroll, and Vicki Chase; and many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her adoptive parents, Roy and Bonita Fowler; stepmother, Lenora Fowler; paternal grandparents, Albert Wesley and Mary Agnes Fowler; maternal grandparents, William Ernest and Zenobia Elizabeth Heddin; aunts, Alma Fowler and Irene Fowler; cousins, Rhonda Fowler Travis and Glendal Fowler; biological father, Donald E. Chase, and half-brother, Tim Chase.

Online condolences may be made to the family on Mary Beth’s memorial page at www.watersfuneral.com. Memorials may be made to an animal rescue organization of your choice.