Mary Jeanette Wells Wood

The beloved matriarch of the Wood Family, Mary Jeanette Wells Wood, age 94, went home to The Lord on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in the presence of family, friends, and caregivers.

Ms. Wood was a resident of Ocean Springs, calling the Mississippi Gulf Coast home for 65 years.

She was the mother of four children and had eight grandchildren and ten great grandchildren with whom she loved to spend time, alongside the countless others she adopted into her family and heart throughout her many years. She enjoyed ballroom dancing, gardening, fellowship with her many friends — especially those at Hartz, and Bible study and volunteering at the food bank through Emmanuel Baptist Church, which she was a member of since 1963. Her absence will be greatly felt by her family and friends.

Ms. Wood worked as an RN at nursing homes after earning her nursing degree in her mid-fifties. She retired at the age of eighty-five.

She is preceded in death by her beloved parents, Royce and Ollie Mae Wells, her daughter and son-in-law, Rebecca Lynn “Becky” and Greg Taylor, and her sisters, Mildred Wells, Ona Mae “Pete” Stephens, and Margie Walters.

She is survived by her son, Lawrence Neal Wood and his wife, Kathy Byrd Wood, of Nesbit, Mississippi; her son, Robert Shelton Wood and his wife, Sharon Kelli Gillim Wood, of Franklin, Tennessee; her son, David John Wood and his wife, Chris Wood, of Sugar Hill, Georgia; her grandchildren, Michael Taylor, Rachel Taylor Green, Leslie Wood Puggi, Kristen Wood Prewitt, Brittany Wood Bishop, Emily Gayle Wood, Justin McNeil Wood, and Morgan Kierce Wood; and her great grandchildren, Sophia Taylor, Chelsea Taylor, Gradie Green, Mabrie Green, Matthew Puggi, Isabella Puggi, Liliana Puggi, Eden Prewitt, Eleanor Bishop, and Jameson Bishop.

Ms. Wood’s family would like to express their gratitude to the kind and loving caregivers at Lighthouse Assisted Living in Ocean Springs and Notre Dame Hospice for the blessings of peace and comfort provided to her and her loved ones in her final weeks.

The family asks for donations to Emmanuel Baptist Church 401 Holcomb Boulevard, Ocean Springs, MS 39564 online giving, in person, or by mail in lieu of flowers.

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A celebration of life will be held at Emmanuel Baptist Church, 401 Holcomb Boulevard, Ocean Springs, Mississippi 39564 on Saturday, May 3, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. Friends may join the family for visitation starting at 2:00 p.m.

Bradford-O’Keefe Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Mary Wood.