Mary Ann Bridges

Mary Ann Hines Bridges passed away May 24, 2025 at the age of 90 after a brief hospitalization. Blake, her beloved husband of almost 69 years, was at her side.

Mary Ann Hines Bridges-- sassy, smart, and beautiful-- was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.

An only child, Mary Ann was loved and probably a little spoiled by her doting parents, Frances and Harold Hines. They proudly placed an announcement in the Atlanta Journal when their baby girl was born in April 1935-- and they called her "the baby" until they left this world

When Mary Ann was about 3 years old, Harold and Frances built a bungalow in the tiny city of Pine Lake, Georgia, just a few miles east of Atlanta. Pine Lake was a wonderful place to grow up. Mary Ann remembers playing with friends, swimming in the lake, fishing with her parents off their dock, paddling in their little boat, playing with her dog Snow, and riding her bike everywhere. The family lived in Pine Lake until Mary Ann was about 12 years old.

In 1947 Frances and Harold sold their Pine Lake home and built a charming home that looked like a log cabin on Sheridan Road, near the intersection of Cheshire Bridge and LaVista, just inside the Fulton County line. This is where Mary Ann spent her teenage years and early 20s.

When she was in 8th grade, Mary Ann was enrolled at North Fulton High School, where she was an excellent student. At North Fulton she met a very cute fellow named Blake Bridges. The two started dating soon after they met and never saw anyone else after that. Blake would borrow his father's car to drive the 3 or 4 miles from the Bridges’ Buckhead home to Sheridan Road. They enjoyed typical dates of the era-- movies, meals at the soda fountain, and hanging out with friends. Mary Ann, an only child, really enjoyed spending time at the Bridges' big house; Blake had six brothers and sisters! Mary Ann loved the bustle and fun at the Bridges home, which stood in sharp contrast to the quiet Hines home on Sheridan Road.

After graduating from North Fulton, Mary Ann took some college classes. Frances, however, was insistent that her daughter get a job. Her grandmother had a friend who was a banker. He set Mary Ann up as a teller at Fulton National Bank, where she worked for about three years. In the meantime, Blake was off to serve in the US Marines, where he was eventually stationed in California.

The couple got engaged in 1955, and married August 11, 1956 at Morningside Baptist Church in Atlanta. After the wedding, Blake and Mary Ann left immediately for California, where Blake needed to serve out his enlistment. The drive across the USA was their honeymoon; they visited the Grand Canyon, the Petrified Forest, and Las Vegas.

It was just a few weeks after getting settled into their new apartment that Mary Ann realized that she was expecting. Sherrie Leigh Bridges was born on May 22, 1957.

Soon after returning to Atlanta, Blake and Mary Ann purchased their first home, a cute little bungalow on Vista Trail in the Woodland Hills subdivision.

Mary Ann filled her home with art, music, and books. She was a voracious reader, often reading an entire novel in one day. As for music, she loved Elvis, Tony Bennett, and Bobby Vinton and a record was always playing on the big old-fashioned record player in the living room. Mary Ann also had an eye for interior spaces; everyone who visited her home remarked on how cute it was. Over the years she became an accomplished home decorator, taking after her mother Frances.

Three more children were born while the couple lived on Vista Trail: Lisa Dawn in December 1959, Laurie Susan in August 1961, and Richard Blake, Jr. in February 1964. Mary Ann was kept busy at home while Blake worked hard to feed and clothe his little family. The family went to the beach just about every year– either Jacksonville or Daytona Beach, Florida. They also loved going to Lake Lanier where Blake’s parents had a modest lake house.

It was not easy to be a mother in the 50s and 60s. When her oldest was six, Mary Ann also had a four-year-old, a two-year-old, and a newborn baby boy. She cooked three meals a day, kept the house neat and clean, and somehow kept her sanity. For every birthday there was a cake and a party, every Halloween there were costumes and trick-or-treating, and at Christmas there were tons of presents under the tree. The Bridges kids did not want for anything, and Mary Ann gets a lot of credit for all the hard work she did to keep her little family running.

Around 1967 or so, Mary Ann decided to get her little brood to church. Blake’s parents had been charter members of Wieuca Road Baptist Church, so Mary Ann decided to try it. The family was active at Wieuca Road for a good many years.

Once the children got a little older, Mary Ann chose one fall to take a painting class at a shop at Broadview Plaza. Here she uncovered a talent no one knew she had-- and Mary Ann was as surprised as anyone else. She became quite an accomplished painter over those months. She absolutely loved painting, and it provided her with a creative respite from her life as a homemaker. Mary Ann proudly displayed several of her paintings at her home, lovely reminders of a happy time in her life.

The kids grew up and Mary Ann began to have more time for herself. In the early 1970s she took a real estate course and got her license. She worked for Mrs. Brown's agency at Toco Hills. There she did some home sales and some office work.

At the same time Mary Ann was working at Mrs. Brown's real estate office, Blake was setting out in a new real estate career as well. By the late 70s he was a homebuilder in Cobb County. It was during this time that the family made a big move to a new home on Missy Drive in East Cobb County. Mary Ann used all of her decorating chops to make the new house a comfortable home. The couple met several other couples in the subdivision; they formed a dinner club and called themselves the Dirty Dozen. They had a lot of good times with that fun group.

With all of the kids grown and out of the house, it was time for Mary Ann and Blake to do some traveling. They went on several cruises, which they really enjoyed. Blake and Mary Ann also loved traveling to the Beau Rivage resort in Biloxi, Mississippi to play the slots at the casino there. Mary Ann absolutely loved playing the slot machines; she only played quarters, but to her it was always a thrill to get a win.

Mary Ann and Blake enjoyed being grandparents to Thomas Crow and Amy Earle—and great-grandparents to Eli Hamrick, born in 2023 on Blake’s birthday.

The most difficult time for Mary Ann and the whole family was the death of Richard Bridges, Jr. A Navy pilot, Richard was killed during a training exercise over the Pacific Ocean. Mary Ann grieved for Richard the rest of her life.

The years went by; several moves later Mary Ann and Blake settled at their lovely home on Addie Pond Way in West Cobb. This spacious home was the place for holiday dinners and birthday celebrations. Mary Ann loved hosting the whole family and took great pains to make sure that everything was perfect. A highlight of any celebration would be Mary Ann’s unbelievably delicious carrot cake.

Formal dinners aside, Mary Ann and Blake were happy to welcome family and friends anytime. This was—and is—a happy home.

Mary Ann leaves to mourn her passing her husband Richard Blake Bridges, Sr.; daughters Sherrie Crow (David), Lisa Earle, and Laurie Bridges; grandchildren Thomas Crow and Amy Hamrick; and great-grandson Eli Hamrick. She was preceded in death by her parents, Nellie Frances and Gordon Harold Hines; her son Lt. Richard Blake Bridges, Jr., US Navy; her son-in-law Larry Earle; and her great-granddaughter Maddison Bree McDonald.

Per the family’s wishes, a private memorial will be held. Memorial contributions can be made to the American Red Cross, www.redcross.org