STANDISH – Mary Frances Ross, 66, of Standish, formerly of Cape Elizabeth, died peacefully on Oct. 12, 2020, at Gosnell Memorial Hospice House in Scarborough following a period of declining health.

She was born on April 11, 1954, in Springfield, Mass., the daughter of Robert Webster Ross and Dr. Jean Frances (Sullivan) Ross.

Mary grew up in Wilbraham, Mass., graduating from Minnechaug Regional High School in 1972. She attended Skidmore College and graduated cum laude in 1976 from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a Bachelor of Science degree in human nutrition. She also earned an associate degree in computer technology in 1999 from Southern Maine Community College.

Mary loved people and adventure. She was an expert skier, mastering the slopes at an early age as a junior member of the Springfield Ski Club in Blandford, Mass. She went on to teach skiing at Berkshire East ski area in Charlemont, Mass., and at several ski areas throughout Maine. She most enjoyed teaching young school children to ski, patiently lifting them up when they fell and showering them with words of encouragement as they took their first tentative runs down the bunny slope.

Mary also loved sailing and enjoyed many a summer day with her parents steering the sloop Temptress across Block Island Sound off Newport, R.I. She worked as chef aboard the schooner Harvey Gamage in the mid-1970s, keeping crew and passengers happily well fed from the coast of Maine to the Caribbean. Mary was an avid cello student. She also laid claim to having helped co-found the Roy Orbison fan club.

Mary moved to Maine in 1977, living first in Rockland and working as a dietician for the Camden Community Hospital. She then moved to Winslow, where she lived for five idyllic years on Pattee Pond and worked as a case manager for the woman, infants and children supplemental nutrition program and later as a dietician at the Waterville Osteopathic Hospital.

She moved to Cape Elizabeth in 1983. For several years, while raising three young children, she owned and operated The Outer Office, a home-based word processing service.

Mary married Warren Wilmot Sr. on July 22, 2000. They met as students at Southern Maine Community College and eventually split their time between a home they built on Frye Island and The Villages in Florida, all the while taking loving care of Mary’s mother, Jean. They most enjoyed camping and traveling to Europe. More than anything, Mary enjoyed spending time with her husband, their children, grandchildren, cousins and friends.

Mary was predeceased by her parents. She is survived by her loving husband, Warren Wilmot Sr. of Standish; a daughter, Sara Nemitz of Scarborough, sons Eric Nemitz and his wife, Hong Jung Yun, of Portland, and Karl Nemitz and his wife, Aliza, of North Stamford, Conn.; stepchildren Brent Wilmot and Jennifer Greer, Abram Wilmot and his wife, Kathleen, Warren J. Wilmot Jr. and his wife, Ursula, and Sally Wilmot; an aunt, Lorraine B. Sullivan of Chesterfield, Mo; cousins Kathryn and Steven Robinson, Michael and Janet Sullivan, and Sharon and Michael Ghormley; grandchildren August and Juneau Yunitz, Joseph Wilmot, Kelsey and Morgan Wilmot, Murreal, Axl and Wallace Wilmot and Marian Wilmot.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be no visiting hours or funeral. A memorial service will be held at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Hospice of Southern Maine, 390 U.S. Route One, Scarborough, ME 04074, or online at http://www.hospiceofsouthernmaine.org/give.