Ann Tracy Abess, Rn

ANN TRACY ABESS, RN

Ann Tracy Abess, 73, a Registered Nurse and wife of John F. Abess, M.D. of Charleston, SC, entered into eternal rest Friday May 31, 2019. Relatives and friends of Dr. John and Ann Tracy Abess are invited to attend her Mass of Christian Burial, which will be celebrated by Msgr. Charles Rowland at 10:00 AM, Wednesday, 5 June, 2019 at The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, 120 Broad Street, Charleston. The Rite of Committal will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery, James Island. The family will receive friends between 5:00 PM and 7:00 PM Tuesday, 4 June at the James A. McAlister Funeral Home, 1620 Savannah Highway.

People who know Ann understand her as kind, generous, dependable and non-pretentious. She is also recognized as fiercely intelligent, unbelievably hard working, and faithful to her husband, family and Creator. She was uncommonly brave through her illness and dying. She continued to think of others rather than herself throughout these past 18 months. And she met death with the confidence of a saint.

Ann had a special connection over the years to her dogs. She has owned 7 Black Labrador dogs. Often seen around town walking her dogs, she was written up in the Charleston News & Courier because of it.

She was born in Buffalo, NY on 28 July 1945. Parents were Dr. and Mrs. Edward Magee Tracy. She is the oldest of 7 children, the valedictorian of St. Mary’s Seminary High School Buffalo, NY. She traveled throughout Europe after graduating from high school. On returning to the U.S. she entered St. Joseph’s School of Nursing, in Syracuse, NY. She was class president and graduated with her nursing degree in 1966. She also engaged in artistic studies at Rosary Hill College in Buffalo. She held extensive nursing positions in pediatric and adult nursing, including charge nurse at Children’s Hospital, Buffalo, NY.

Ann married John Frederick Abess at St. Peter & Paul’s Church in Hamburg, NY in 1967. She followed her husband throughout his military training and service. Together, they lived in Livorno, Italy. On returning to the U.S. she entered and graduated from the Nurse Midwifery Program at The Medical University of South Carolina. In 1984 she agreed to work as nurse and office manager for her husband’s medical practice. Her husband is a psychiatrist in Charleston, SC. Their 50th wedding anniversary vows were renewed at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist on 24 June 2017.

Their first son, John Tracy Abess, was born in Pisa, Italy in 1969. He is now an architect in Charleston, SC. Their 2nd son, Alexander Tracy Abess, was born in Charleston, SC in 1974. He is now an anesthesiologist at Dartmouth Medical Center, NH. He and his wife Maud, a speech pathologist and physician’s assistant, have 2 children, Rana Ann Abess and Hendrik Magee Abess.

Siblings include Sheila Buonerba (David), Honolulu, HI; Edward Tracy (Angelynne), Charleston, SC; Mark Tracy (Roseann), Charleston, SC; Jeffrey Tracy (deceased); Arthur Tracy (Linda), Rexford, NY; and Clotilde Shapiro (Seth), Seattle, WA.

In lieu of flowers, a donation in memory of Ann can be provided to Roper St. Francis Foundation, where she received excellent care accompanied by genuine compassion. To make such a donation visit https://www.rsfhfoundation.org/donate .