Mary Buxton Ward was born in Melrose, Massachusetts in 1929 and passed away on Tuesday, March 2, 2010 in the University Medical Center at Princeton. She was married twice and has two daughters, Shelley Rhodes of Upper Black Eddy, PA and Heather Ward of Columbus, OH and two grandsons, Justin and Shane Rhodes, each of whom was, in their special way, the joy of her life. Mary is also survived by two sisters and brothers-in-law, Jane and Jack Donahue and Barbara and Rick Conrad and a brother and sister-in-law Raymond and Ann Buxton, as well as many beloved nieces, nephews and friends.

In the 1950's, Mary served with the State Department in embassies in Libya, Panama and Hong Kong. Returning to the States, she lived in Florida, North Carolina and California, before moving to New Jersey in the late 1960's. For 16 years, she was with the Princeton Art Association, acting as Executive Director for the last ten of those years. Resigning from that position to work with the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament, she served with that organization as Secretary and Assistant Director for six years. She retired in 2004 from the University Medical Center at Princeton after 20 years of service in various capacities.

An activist, she was jailed several times over the years for her activities in support of civil rights, withdrawal from Vietnam and nuclear disarmament. Her protest against nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site in 1986 resulted in a 5-day jail sentence. Her civil rights activities are mentioned in Joan Morrison's book, From Camelot to Kent State.

During her years in Princeton, Mary served on the Boards of Nuclear Dialogue, Coalition for Peace Action, Federated Art Associations of New Jersey, teamwork Dance and, for six years, as a volunteer member of the court-appointed Child Placement Review Board of Mercer County and as a volunteer member of their Advisory Council. For many years, she has volunteered with Centurion Ministries, a prisoner advocacy group for those unjustly convicted and also served on the Board of Directors of the Center for Family, Community and Social Justice.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 3, 2010 from 2:00-3:00 p.m. at Princeton Friends Meeting, 470 Quaker Road, Princeton, NJ 08540 with a reception and light refreshments to follow.

Memorial contributions may be sent in her memory to Covenant House, 461 Eighth St, New York, NY, 10001 or Trinity Counseling Services, 22 Stockton St., Princeton, NJ, 08540.