Mary Fields DiGioia of Doraville, GA passed peacefully in her home at the age of 81, surrounded by her son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren on Sunday, December 28th.

Mary was born in the drowsy, pastoral fishing village of Lubec, Maine, the eastern-most point in the United States. She graduated from high school at Mount Merici Academy, a convent and girl's school in the town of Waterville, Maine, where she spent several years growing up with her three brothers, Peter, Clifford and Jeffrey. After graduation, she nearly pursued a women's religious vocation with plans to enter the convent as a nun but instead decided to attend broadcasting school in New York City, where she worked for several years during the 1960's as a property manager in Manhattan and learned the ropes of the real estate industry. After marrying in 1974, starting a family in Boston and then later moving to Alpharetta, Georgia in 1985, she became an administrative assistant for many years. In her free time, she took great pride in self-publishing her own monthly newsletter with a friend that focused on the happenings in her local city government. Her newsletter was very much sought-after by local business owners and neighbors, many of whom clamored for a copy upon its release each month. She launched a campaign for a seat on the Alpharetta City Council during the early 1990's but was defeated in her bid by an infinitesimally small number of votes. She was hired a few years later by Glenridge Development, where she enjoyed her work immensely. After many years with them, she would retire from Glenridge shortly after her 70th birthday. In life, Mary was characterized by her love of her family, friendships spanning more than six decades, her silver-tongued eloquence, wonderful cooking and above all, her unwavering traditional Catholic faith. For twenty years, she was a faithful parishioner at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Roswell, where she made many friends and was a familiar face to all. She had a special devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, always prayed the Holy Rosary and assisted in the offering of the Latin Mass every week. She was preceded in death by her husband Eugene DiGioia, her parents George and Eileen Moody and brothers Clifford and Jeffrey Moody. She is survived by her brother Peter Moody, her son Eugenio DiGioia (Sarah) and daughter Portia Bryant, along with her grandchildren Daphne and Horace DiGioia and Riley Bryant.

A funeral service will be held the weekend of January 2nd-3rd. A visitation will be held on Friday, January 2nd at Northside Chapel, located at 12050 Crabapple Rd. in Roswell, GA from 3:00pm-5:00pm. The funeral Mass and burial will take place on the following day, Saturday, January 3rd, at 10am at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church, located at 715 Hardscrabble Rd., Roswell, GA 30075, followed by refreshments in the parish hall.

In lieu of flowers, Mary asked that those wishing may make donations to the St. Michael's building fund at St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church.