Mary F. Amaral, of Greenfield passed away peacefully Sunday, January 13, 2013 at Mee Memorial Hospital in King City. She was 97 years old.

SERVICE INFORMATION:

A ROSARY AND MASS was held 10:00 a.m., Friday, January 18, 2013, at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Greenfield. Mary was laid to rest in Holy Trinity Cemetery following the Mass.

Mary was born July 23, 1915 in Bristol, Rhode Island. She was the first of 15 children born to Antonio and Adeline Benevides.

In 1939 she married John Amaral and together they moved to California. They settled in south Monterey County. They purchased land and farmed the Amaral Ranch for many years living on Central Avenue between King City and Greenfield. In 1956 Mary and John moved to Greenfield. Mary has lived there ever since.

Being an excellent cook, she enjoyed cooking and was a great seamstress. She loved shopping and enjoyed driving. She would often taxi her friends wherever they needed to go. She was a parishioner of Holy Trinity Catholic Church and she was truly dedicated to her faith. She would often volunteer and coordinate rummage sales for the church. She taught catechism classes for many years. Mary had traditional beliefs. She felt that a woman's place was in the home. She also would say, "you're only as old as you feel."

Mary is survived by her sister, Cora Cuido; nephews, Robert Ferreira and Joe Amarel as well as numerous nieces and nephews living on the East Coast. She is preceded in death by her husband, John Amaral.