Mary J. Christensen (69) Obituary (1951 - 2024)

Born Sep 21, 1951, Mary J. Christensen (69) attended Papillion-la Vista High School in Papillion, NE. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about Mary J. Christensen (69).

Graduation Year	Class of 1969
Date of Birth	Sep 21, 1951
Date of Passing	Apr 24, 2024
About	(no additional information)
Events	Mary J. Christensen (69) September 21, 1951 - April 25, 2024 Mary was born to Wayne A. and Dorothy H. Christensen at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, on September 21, 1951. After graduating from Papillion High School in Papillion, Nebraska, in 1969, she attended college at the University of Nebraska-Kearney and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she became a roommate, colleague, and friend of Jeanne Zabel Wilson, recently deceased, beloved "adopted" sister and aunt of all of Mary's family. Mary began her career as a telephone operator at Lincoln Telephone and Telegraph as computers were in their infancy but fast becoming important parts of communications systems. Mary eventually became a troubleshooting specialist in telecommunications switching systems, a specialty that got her a position with Nortel in the Research Triangle in the Raleigh/Durham area of North Carolina. In her new position, Mary traveled to Chicago when its main zip code lost telecommunications capabilities, to Atlanta to upgrade telecommunications equipment for the 1996 Olympics (no equipment failures developed), and to New York City after 9/11 caused telephone networks to go down. After Nortel made major cuts and later went bankrupt, Mary ended her career at MetaMetrics in Durham as a research specialist. Mary enjoyed spending time with her siblings and their families in Nebraska and Illinois as well as with her many friends in North Carolina and Nebraska. In her spare time, she enjoyed reading and a variety of crafts, especially painting and crocheting. Mary also loved her longtime dog companions-from Gretchen, Atlas, Katje, Alice, Bailey, Carly, and Dottie to her beloved Emmy Lou, who survived her mistress. Mary was predeceased by her parents; her stepmother, Juanita Ross; her sister Nancy J. Ivey and Nancy's husband, Bob; her stepbrother, Larry Ross, and his wife, Bobbie; her niece Susanna Ivey; and her grand nephew Alexander Christensen. She is survived by her sister Judy and her husband, Ross Dill, and her brother, Bill, and his wife, Cathy Christensen. In addition, she is survived by nieces and nephews Jason Dill, Adam Dill, Rob Ivey, Caralee Ivey Shapero, David Christensen, Jesica Christensen Herrick, Andy Ross, Matt Ross, and their spouses and families. Mary died of brain cancer on April 25, 2024. A person who has left a lasting impression on many, Mary will be sorely missed