Mary Christine Bogue Habeeb

Published 3:36 pm Friday, May 29, 2020

Mary Christine Bogue Habeeb passed away from complications of Parkinson’s Disease May 20, 2020, in Birmingham, Ala.

Chris was born in Memphis, Tenn. on Christmas Day to Capt. William Bryson Bogue and Eva Woody Bogue. She grew-up on Seventh Street surrounded by family, including her beloved grandmother and uncles.

She spoke lovingly of her father returning home from working on the river, caring for baby brother Bobby, and visiting Grandmother Woody’s farm with the aromas of the smokehouse and drinking the warm, sweet milk straight from the cow.

At the farm, Chris fondly recalled her uncles teaching her grandmother how to drive. Her grandmother accidentally drove off in the car by herself, bouncing over the field rows with her uncles chasing behind her. Chris graduated from Humes High School where she was a member of the Honor Society and class beauty.

During WWII, Chris fell in love with Edward Lee Habeeb while he was working at a B-25 aircraft factory in Memphis. While dating, Ed became ill. She remained loving and devoted throughout, marrying him in June 1946. They were married for 62 years.

Chris and Lena, Ed’s mother, were very close, preparing family dinners every weekend. Lena had coffee ready for Chris after work every weekday so they could visit on her back porch. Chris retired after 36 years from Waterways Experiment Station as an editor in the Publications and Graphic Arts Division. Chris was also a member of Pi Alpha Kappa sorority.

She was a communicant of Christ Episcopal Church, where she served on the Altar Guild and with Ed on the Pancake Supper Committee. A talented pianist, she passed on her love of music to her daughters. She loved gardening and creating beautiful pieces of needlepoint and crochet for loved ones to enjoy.

Her father, Capt. Bogue of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, was the original master of the dredge boat Jadwin while its homeport was Memphis. The Corps lauded him by naming a research vessel, The Bogue, in his honor.

Chris was descended from Dr. John Woodson of Devonshire, England, who joined the Jamestown Settlement as a surgeon in 1619 and Col. Thomas Jefferson Goode who fought with George Washington at Trenton and Yorktown and was one of the original settlers of Tipton County, Tennessee.

In addition to Ed and her parents, she was preceded in death by her daughter, Chrislee; brother, Robert Bryson Bogue; in-laws, Michael Habeeb and Lena Keene Habeeb; brothers-in-law, Habeeb Michael Habeeb II, Paul Nicholas Habeeb and Dr. Albert F.W. Habeeb; and sisters-in-law, Dorothy VanLue Habeeb and Helen Habeeb Robinson.

She leaves behind her beloved daughters, Linda Habeeb Thill of Richmond, Va., and Paula Habeeb Wall and son-in-law Larry of Birmingham, Ala.; grandchildren, Bryson Edward Habeeb Wall and Anna Catherine Thill; sister, Wanda Marie Bogue; and sister-in-law Lillian Fech Bogue of Columbus; sister-in-law, Florence Cordell-Reeh of New Orleans; nieces and nephews.

The Rev. Sam Godfrey will officiate the ceremony at Christ Episcopal Church June 3 at 10 a.m. Due to social distancing being observed in the sanctuary, there will be no visitation before the ceremony but the family will be in the sanctuary a few minutes before the start of the service.

Burial will follow in the family plot at Cedar Hill Cemetery. Glenwood Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.

Memorials may be made to Christ Episcopal Church, 1115 Main St., Vicksburg, MS 39183