Mary Lynch Mcqueen

Mary Lynch McQueen of Charleston, retired history teacher and widow of John Ross Copeland, died Friday, September 1 at the Hospice Center of Charleston. She was 88. She was a teacher in the public schools of Charleston and Berkeley Counties for over 25 years.  In 1978 and for the next 16 years she taught history, economics, geography and government at Hanahan High School. She retired from that position in 1994. In the years following her retirement she served as a history tutor in the OASIS program and as an adjunct instructor during summer orientation at The Citadel. Born Mary de Saussure McQueen in Charleston on December 7, 1928, she was daughter of the late John Lynch McQueen of Columbia and Mary Sinkler de Saussure of Charleston.  She was also the granddaughter of Dr. Henry William de Saussure, scion of the Huguenot family of that name, and a grandniece of Dr. Patrick N. Lynch, 3rd Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston. She attended public schools in Richmond, VA and Charleston.  As a 1945 graduate of Memminger High School, she was a member of what was known as the “War Class” at the all-girls public school formerly located in downtown Charleston.  Mary McQueen represented the seventh generation of her family to attend or be closely associated with the University of South Carolina. Her direct ancestor, Henry William de Saussure, co-sponsored the legislation which created the University in 1801. The Carolina Alma Mater was set to music in her paternal grandmother’s Columbia home and her aunt was instrumental in establishing a sorority at USC. Mary was a member of the USC Class of 1949. She received a BA (AB) degree with a double major in Medieval History and English.  At USC she was an Assistant Editor of the 1948 yearbook, Garnet & Black, President of Kappa Delta social sorority, member of the Euphrosynean Literary Society and Alpha Kappa Gamma service sorority. In later years she pursued graduate work in history and was a Masters degree candidate at The Citadel. While a student at USC, she worked as a United Nations intern in New York City during that international body’s first summer of operations there.  Also in 1946, she and another USC classmate were invited to observe an official post-war reconstruction assessment tour of European capitals and industrial centers. This survey of WWII’s destruction was initiated only a year after the German surrender. Organized by the US State Department to estimate the cost of reconstruction of rail and transportation systems which had been damaged or destroyed during the war, the findings eventually led to the Marshall Plan to aid in post war recovery. This unique invitation to visit a war-torn Europe at the age of 17 was extended to her by an executive with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, a close friend of her late father, who wished to encourage her interest in foreign service which rarely considered women and rarer still, women from the South. This experience made a lasting impression on her as a teacher and later as a contributor to educational programs designed to extend similar opportunities to others. In 1948, she was nominated for a Fulbright Scholarship, eventually being recognized as a finalist. From 1985-87, she served as a member of the USC Alumni Association, Board of Trustees.  Based on her lifelong interest in history and travel, in 2001 she initiated an endowment fund to assist undergraduate college students from this state who would pursue foreign studies and travel while attending USC.  Following her retirement from teaching, she become a frequent traveler, returning many times to Europe. She was pleased to have worked in cooperation with her alma mater to extend educational opportunities for international travel to undergraduate history students from South Carolina. Mary McQueen was active in many civic groups. She was a current or former member of several local organizations including the Junior League of Charleston, American Federation of Teachers – AFL/CIO, Ladies Benevolent Society of Charleston, Colonial Dames of SC, Huguenot Society, DAR, the Women’s Club of Charleston and the Carolina Assembly. Her volunteer work included My Sisters House, American Red Cross, Horizon House, Colleton County Museum, Gibbes Museum and Adult Education & Literacy programs in Charleston, Colleton and Bamberg Counties. She also served several terms as a precinct officer for the Charleston County Democratic Party. She was an Anglican Catholic and a member of the Church of the Holy Communion in Charleston. She is survived by a son, Henry de Saussure Copeland of Charleston and Clemson; a grandson, Martin Tobias Copeland (Kristen) and two great grandchildren Isaac Copeland and Hannah Copeland all of Portland, Oregon. In addition to her husband who passed away in 2008, she was predeceased by a son, John Lynch McQueen Copeland and by a daughter, Trenholm Heyward Gibbes Copeland. The family wishes to convey their sincere thanks to the medical professionals and staff for the care and assistance provided while Mary was a patient in the cardiovascular section of Roper Hospital and while undergoing rehabilitation treatment at NHC. Special thanks to those who cared for her at the Hospice Center of Charleston. Funeral arrangements are being handled by James A. McAlister Funeral Home.  A memorial service and Requiem Mass will be held at the Church of the Holy Communion on Saturday, September 23, starting at 1:00 pm. A reception will follow in the parish hall. Private burial at the National Cemetery in Beaufort will take place at a later date. Honorary pallbearers, representing her extended family, professional colleagues and many friends, are Jeff McDowell Ball, Frederick Richards Burnet, Park Ravenel Dougherty, Walter Nathaniel Boags, Kenneth E. Hauck, Deborah Uzzell Saari, Glenn Frank Grahl, Leroy Connors, Leon (Buzz) Edwards and Naomi Graham Fleming. In lieu of flowers, it is requested that memorials be given to the McQueen-Copeland Endowment Fund for Undergraduate Studies in History, c/o University of South Carolina Educational Foundation, Office of Development, Columbia, SC 29208; or to a charity of one’s choice.