Mary Bridget Kohair, 71, passed away suddenly at her home in King George, Virginia, on March 20, 2025.

Mary grew up in Allen Park, Michigan with her eight brothers and sisters.  She was a graduate of Melvindale High school.  She earned her Associate’s Degree in Nursing from Henry Ford Community College in 1973, and worked as a Registered Nurse at Harper Hospital, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, and the University of Michigan Medical Center until her retirement in 2015.  She spent most of her career in intensive care units, and served as a forensic nurse with the Washtenaw County Medical examiner’s office.  She was tough, quick on her feet, and cool under pressure.

She loved nature.  She collected butterflies, and led expeditions in the depth of winter to look for cocoons.  She raised chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, and corgis.  Her garden was her masterpiece–always evolving, and never quite finished.  Every visit to her began with a tour of what was there, what was growing, what wasn’t, and what the next step would be, and ended with you taking home a plant, some vegetables, or some eggs.  She achieved certification as a Master Gardener, and looked for historic gardens to tour so she could get ideas (and the occasional clipping).  In the spring and summer, you could find her most afternoons wearing a floppy hat and sipping a chilled Rose with music playing (most often the Rolling Stones), admiring her newest plantings and planning her next ones.

Mary loved a good laugh and a good deal.  She instructed her grandchildren in the dark arts of “junking” (garage scales and antiquing) passed down from her mother.  Low-stakes gambling was her guilty pleasure.  She was passionately Irish and a fan of the University of Michigan.  She had an arsenal of decorations for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, St. Patrick’s Day, and Independence Day, and always remembered to remind you to “beware the Ides of March.”  Every Christmas, she would bake and decorate more cookies with her grandkids than any family could possibly eat.  She was always–unquestionably and unapologetically–herself.

Mary is survived by her husband, Mark Anthony Kohair, her son, Robert Raymond Camilleri, her grandchildren Joel Camilleri and Rachel Camilleri, and her puppy Mickie.  She is also survived by her siblings John (Debbie) Morgan, Susan Morgan, Patrick (Julie) Morgan, James Morgan, Christena (Dale) Battle, Thomas (Sarah) Morgan, Moira (Alan) Konopka, and was predeceased by her father, Robert Morgan, her mother, Moira Morgan, and her sister Maureen (James) Busby.

A memorial service for friends and family will be held at a later time.  In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Mary’s name to the National Arbor Day Foundation, or a botanical garden in your area.