Mary Martha Hill, born Maria Martha Rodriguez, a former Douglas resident, passed away peacefully in her sleep in Fullerton, California on February 9, 2009. Mary, known to many as Maria, was also affectionately known to her sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews and extended family members simply as “Mane” (pronounced Ma-ne).

Mane was born on October 12, 1912 in Silver City, New Mexico. She was the second of six children. Shortly after her birth, her family moved to Douglas where she grew up and attended public schools. Mane worked at J.C. Penny in Douglas for several years during the Great Depression and World War II. Near the end of the war she met a tall Texan by the name of B.D. “Tex” Hill who she fell in love with and later married. Mane and Tex had three children, Michael, Mary Camille and Steven. Following the death of Tex in 1972, Mane moved to Southern California to be closer to her children.

Mane was loved and cherished by all who knew her. She was the soft-spoken, kind-hearted, religious matriarch of the family. As her children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews knew, and as future generations of the family would quickly learn, you could talk to Mane about anything at any time. She had a quiet wisdom that came naturally. Mane didn’t pretend to know everything. She listened and learned from others and was always willing to share her opinion and advice when requested. Family and friends who knew Mane and strangers who met her over the years learned to love her because of her kindness, sincerity, affection, compassion, humility, and dry sense of humor. Although she had been living in California for over 30 years, Mane’s nieces and nephews in Arizona would regularly call to keep tabs on her because she had been such a large part of their lives during their formative years. For them, Mane was their “second mother.”

Mane is survived by her sisters Eva Roqueni, Manuela and brother Rafael Rodriguez (Chic) of Douglas, daughter Mary Camille, son Steven (Theodora) of La Habra, California, four grandchildren, Joanne, JoAnna Marie, Aphrodite and Steven, three great grandchildren, Art, Dominic and Ayana, and several nieces and nephews in California and Arizona. She was preceded in death by her sisters Luz “Tata” Rodriguez, Lupita Saavedra, and Andrea DeLa Cruz, her brothers Jose (Joe), Adan, and Rumaido Rodriguez, her husband Tex, and her son Michael.

Private funeral services will be held at Memory Garden Memorial Park in Brea, California.