HON MARY C FITZPATRICK



FITZPATRICK, The Honorable Mary C. Passed away peacefully, at her lifelong home in South Boston, on January 16, 2025, at age 97. Beloved and devoted daughter of the late John and Cecelia (McAneney) Fitzpatrick, Mary was born in South Boston on November 3. 1927. Following her graduation from Nazareth High School, Mary began what would become a uniquely distinguished career of service to the Probate and Family Court when she entered the Court system in 1945 as a junior clerk in the Suffolk Probate Court. While working full-time in the Registry of Probate and mastering the intricacies of probate practice, Mary attended at night Calvin Coolidge College in Boston and then Portia Law School (now New England School of Law), from which she graduated as Valedictorian of her class in 1953, and thereafter, in 1954, she was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar. In recognition of her skill and knowledge, in 1961, she was promoted to Assistant Register of Probate. In 1972, she was appointed by Governor Francis Sargent as a Judge of the Probate Court, only the second woman so named in the history of the Court. The following year, in 1973, she was appointed First Justice of the Suffolk Probate Court. a position in which she served with distinction for nearly 25 years. In 1991, she was appointed Chief Justice of the Probate and Family Court Department, the first woman to be so appointed and the first woman to lead a major Trial Court Department in the history of the Commonwealth. Following her retirement in 1997, she contributed her services for several years as a Special Master at the Suffolk Probate and Family Court in child protection and custody cases, a special concern of hers throughout her career and life. Throughout her career, Mary was known for her diligence in reforming and improving court procedures, training and conditions as they affected litigants, court personnel and Judges and for her unwavering courtesy, attentiveness and fairness to all concerned.

Among the honors Mary received in recognition of her many and varied contributions and accomplishments were an honorary degree from the Ncw England School of Law in 1972, the Distinguished Jurist Award from the Massachusetts Association of Women Lawyers in 1992, the Family Court Judge Of The Year Award from the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers in 1995, and in 1994 she was named Judge of The Year by the National Child Support Enforcement Agency. In 1995, in recognition of her service, the Justices of the Probate Court established the Chief Mary C. Fitzpatrick Fund through the Flaschner Institute to specially fund judicial education programs for children's issues. Mary was a person of deep and abiding faith which she lived actively as a devoted lifelong parishioner of St. Brigid Parish of Kildare in South Boston. As a cherished and supportive member of her large extended family of cousins and dear friends, in her unwavering commitment to a life of public service and in the innumerable acts of charity and kindness which characterized her life.

Mary was predeceased by her parents, John and Cecelia Fitzpatrick; many of her cousins; and her dear friend, Joan M. Ryan. She is survived by her many loving cousins, including the families of the Cantwells, Currans, Gordons, Grants, Keatings, lucases, Millers, Mills, Morgans and Petrozzelli families. 

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 12 noon on January, 22, 2025 at St. Brigid of Kildare Parish. 845 East Broadway, South Boston, MA. Visiting Hours will be held at the church from 11 AM to noon, Wednesday, January 22, 2025. Burial at New Calvary Cemetery, 800 Harvard St. Mattapan MA 02126. Reception to follow at the Fox and Hound Restaurant, 123 Sea Street, Quincy. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Mary's name to Catholic Charities Notre Dame Education Center, 202 Old Colony Road, South Boston, MA 02127.

Arrangements by Wm. F. Spencer Funeral Service, SOUTH BOSTON.