Obituary: Mary Ann O’Daniel Comer, 85, Bardstown

Mary Ann O’Daniel Comer, 85, of Bardstown, died peacefully Thursday, March 18 at Nazareth Home in Louisville following anointing by family friend the Rev. Bill Hammer.

She was born March 25, 1935 to William “Bill” and Anna S. O’Daniel, the first of seven children who grew up in Botland where her father ran a general store. She attended grade and high school in Fredericktown and graduated from Bethlehem High School. She earned an associate’s degree from St. Catharine College and worked as an office assistant prior to marriage in 1955 to Carl “Donald” Comer, her husband of 62 years, who preceded her in death in 2018.

She was a stay-at-home mother, a substitute teacher for St. Joseph Elementary, and worked for 17 years in the Nelson County Circuit Clerk’s office. In 1983 she established Hospice of Nelson County, for which she was inducted into the Nelson County Hall of Fame by the Bardstown-Nelson County Chamber of Commerce in 2007, “for the long-lasting contributions made for the betterment of Nelson County and its people.”

She later served as a volunteer answering phones for Hospice, was an avid reader and book club member at Nelson County Public Library, and an active member of St. Joseph Parish, where she was a eucharistic minister and served on the bereavement committee. She also worked in partnership with her husband to produce the Historic Bardstown Antique Show for 45 years.

She was preceded in death by her parents; two sisters, Rose Marie Jones of Louisville and Betty Montgomery of Springfield; one brother, William “Bill” O’Daniel of Bardstown; and one daughter, Denise Comer Simpson of Lexington.

She is survived by two sisters, Charlotte Kirsch of Dayton and Marilyn Meredith of Louisville; one brother, Tony O’Daniel of Bardstown; one sister-in-law, Carolyn O’Daniel of Bardstown; two daughters, Donna (Don) Pursifull of New Carlisle, Ohio, and Diane Comer of Louisville; one son, Doug (Mary) Comer of Hillview; six grandchildren, Elizabeth (Jon) Williams of Hampton, Va., Colleen (Alex) Courtwright of Nicholasville, Carl Harris of Louisville, Laura (Zach) Harris Kingins of Murray, Jordan Simpson of St. Louis, Mo., and Natalie Simpson of Lexington; and three great-grandchildren, Evan Williams, Carolyn Williams, and Henry Courtwright.

The Funeral Mass is 11 a.m. Monday, March 22, 2021, at the Basilica of St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral with burial in the church cemetery.

Visitation is noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, March 21, 2021, and 9-10:15 a.m. Monday, March 22, 2021, at Barlow Funeral Home in Bardstown.

Memorial contributions may go to Hospice of Nelson County.

Barlow Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

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