Mary Elizabeth Ramirez

Mary Elizabeth Ramirez departed this world on April 6, 2024, to reunite with our Heavenly Father in eternal peace. Mary was born on March 26, 1964, to Francis Maurine and Walter Brenk in Crown Point, Indiana, the third of six children. Her family's love was immeasurable, just as her love for them knew no bounds.

Mary grew up in East Chicago and attended Roosevelt High School. As a young girl, she enjoyed being outside with her siblings. She loved to roller-skate and ride her yellow "banana bike", often giving her sisters rides on the handlebars. As much as possible, she would visit a local candy store called "Annie's", where she and her siblings occasionally helped the owners of the store, gladly accepting candy as payment. She loved visiting her grandparents and often spent summers running around with her cousins. She looked forward to the Polish festival each year, where she enjoyed traditional cuisine, dances and songs. As a young girl, she accepted Jesus into her heart and became a devout, lifelong Catholic. She attended mass at St. Michaels and St. Stanislaus church and later filled her home with rosaries and religious artifacts.

Mary married Felipe Ramirez on November 14, 1987. They had five children together: Christopher, Mary, Jennifer, Stephanie, and Sarah. They also had an honorary son, Luis Ramirez, who left us on March 24, 2024. After 25 years, they separated but remained bonded by love through the children they shared together. Mary had a partner in her final days.

Mary loved to cook and was quite good at it. She knew hundreds of recipes by heart, often getting calls from her children asking her to guide them through each step. She loved visiting museums in Chicago with her family and loved to travel. She even made it all the way to Korea to visit her daughter, Sarah, who was stationed there. Mary was a proud Army Mom ! She loved to go shopping and thrifting, and was always picking out carefully-selected gifts for her family and friends. She was the kind of mother who sent her kids home with a present any time they would visit.

Mary was immensely proud of her family and all of their accomplishments. She was always attending graduations, birthdays, and cherished family reunions at her mother's home. Apart from her five children, she had 17 grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, several honorary grandchildren, and a grand-dog. Each gravitated toward Mary's magnetic touch, whether or not they were blood relatives.  In fact, Mary's family often joked about how she "collected kids", but Mary loved each and every one of them and found fulfillment in taking care of them. When one of Mary's daughters fell on hard times, she took it upon herself to adopt all four children. She would raise them to adulthood.

Mary loved to joke and had a delightful sense of humor, which she passed on to her children and maintained even in her final weeks. She was selfless and navigated life with a boldness that captivated all who knew her, always fiercely and unapologetically herself. She had many friends, whom she kept in close contact with, and was truly a beautiful, loving and remarkable woman.

For many years, Mary worked in the hospitality industry. She managed the kitchen at Wells Street in Miller, Indiana for 11 years. She also worked as a crossing guard for the East Chicago, Indiana school system, relishing the opportunity to warmly welcome each child every morning and ensuring their safe journey home to their families in the afternoon. Despite her strong Catholic faith, Mary worked at Temple Israel, too. Her love for the Lord was not limited by one religion.

Mary was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer in February 2022. In the face of her diagnosis, she fought with everything she had, enduring endless treatments, surgeries, and setbacks. She never wavered in her determination to beat the disease, for the sake of her family and loved ones who meant the world to her. But after waging a relentless battle for more than two years, the Lord called her home.

Mary was preceded in death by her great-grandparents; Sexton and Lillie Alexander; her grandparents, Wallace and Flora Alexander; her dad, Walter Brenk; her uncle, Chester Brenk; her mother and father-in-law, Roel and Jovita Ramirez; her two sisters-in-law, Aurora Rodriguez and Guadalupe Salinas; two brothers-in-law, Jesus and Roel Ramirez, Jr.

Mary is survived by her mother, Francis Brenk of Brown County, Indiana; her children, Christopher Ramirez of Lake Station, Indiana, Mary Ramirez of Portage, Indiana, Jennifer Ramirez of Lake Station, Indiana, Stephanie (Meagan) of Girard, Ohio, and Sarah Ramirez of Midvale, Utah; her siblings; Annette (Carl) Jemenko of Gosport, Indiana, Gary Brenk of Monrovia, Indiana, Melinda (Mark) Opachan of Stafford, Virginia, Tammie (Greg) Burbridge of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Marlene Guggenheimer of Wheeling, West Virginia; her grandchildren; Christopher, Jr., Savannah, Anthony, and Gracelynn Ramirez, Isabelle, Raegan, Felipe and Ireland Ramirez, Ariana and Alina Tinoco, Luciana and Amelia Chavez, Julianna, Lilian, Julien, Emma, and Alexander Ramirez; and her grand-dog, Jaxson; her great-grandchildren; Ruby Vaughn, Christopher Ramirez, III, Ezeryah Ramirez, Saint Fitzgerald, Alia Stivanson and Sophia Ramirez; and a host of brothers and sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces and friends who will miss her deeply.

Family, friends and others are invited to Mary's visitations on Monday, April 15, 2024 from 3:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. and Tuesday, April 16, 2024 11:00 a.m.--12:00 p.m. with Funeral Services  Tuesday, April 16, 2024 12:00 p.m.-1;00 p.m. All services held from Ridgelawn Funeral Home 4201 West Ridge Road Gary, Indiana 46408. Interment immediately following at Ridgelawn Cemetery 4401 West Ridge Road.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Mary Elizabeth Ramirez, please visit our floral store.