Mar 16, 2019

Our Mother was an exceptional woman that was loved, is missed and will always be cherished. She was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and friend, the best listener and the kindest person you ever had the pleasure of meeting.

Mary Elizabeth Martin Coode, of Rices Landing, was born on June 21, 1939. She was adopted by James Lynn and Isabel Macintosh Martin of Niagara Falls, N.Y. She gained an adopted brother as well, Robert Lynn Martin, whom she adored. She finished middle school in Niagara Falls and then the family moved to Columbia, Tenn. She attended Bowling Green University in Kentucky. It was during this time she would meet her future husband, Thomas H. Coode.

The couple moved to Nashville and had their first child. They moved again, this time to Watkinsville, Ga., where they had three more children. After her husband was hired as a history professor, the family moved to Southwestern Pennsylvania where she would have her last two children. When the youngest of six children went off to first grade, Liz, as most knew her, began her career with the Curriculum Department at the Intermediate Unit One in California, Pa. Although, she continued to make her children and home her first priority, she gave 27 years of impeccable service to the Intermediate Unit and was always grateful for the precious relationships she built there with lifelong friends.

Liz and “T” had six children that she raised with a gentle tongue, a listening ear and the patience of a saint. Her quiet strength and perseverance was immense. She was so nurturing, always giving. All who knew her felt genuinely welcomed by her smile and never did she say an unkind word about another person. She was a cancer survivor and certainly experienced her share of loss…yet, all the while she would give hope and support to others, never once putting herself first.

She had eight grandchildren who kept her home bright, cheery and full of activity; making gingerbread houses, wandering through the woods and having endless celebrations where she would always make sure you had a wrapped gift.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas H. Coode; parents, James and Isabel Macintosh Martin; brother, Robert Lynn Martin and beloved grandson, Tyler Lynn Doman.

She is survived by her six children and grandchildren, for which her love and support never waivered, James Martin, Mary John (Frank Doman), Kelly Demetrius (Cynthia Marietta), Thomas Saundy, Leigh Ellen, Stephen Lynn (Amanda Coode). Also surviving are her beloved grandchildren, Elizabeth Mae, Sarah Grace, Brianna Rose, Thomas Michael, Hannah Marie, Connor Demetrius, and Ripley Selene.

Friends and family will be received from 4 to 7 p.m. on March 23rd for a celebration of life at the Duck Hollow Golf Club, 374 Duck Hollow Road, Uniontown, PA 15401. Her dear friend, Frank Palo, will deliver a eulogy at 5 p.m. The floor will then be open for everyone to share thoughts, memories or stories about our dearest Liz.

Arrangements are entrusted to the Paul M. Lesako Funeral Home Inc., 204 Dowlin Avenue, Carmichaels, PA 15320, 724-966-5100.