Mary Agnes Leitch Racki, age 93, decided to join her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Christopher A. Leitch; brother, Rev. Joseph L. Leitch; and sons, Paul Joseph and John Robert in the Kingdom of God. She began her journey on this earth on December 15, 1912 in Newport News, VA. After graduating from St. Vincent’s School and High School, she obtained her R.N. from the DePaul School of Nursing circa 1930 and took employment with the Veterans Administration. She served in VA Hospitals in Huntington, WV and Washington D.C., attending Catholic University in D.C. and coming within 1 unit of completion of a B.S. Degree in Nursing.
A fervent believer in the power of prayer, Mary Agnes prayed to the Blessed Mother for “a good husband” and in 1939 she met Matt M. Racki, Jr. in Bordeaux, France while on a vacation with her mother and brother. He was on a stave buying trip for his father, a distributor in Beaumont, Texas. They were married by her brother, Rev. Leitch, in Alexandria, VA on July 13, 1940.
Very proud of her Virginia birth and heritage, Mary Agnes enjoyed traveling throughout most of her life, logging trips to Europe, the Far East, Australia, Mexico and South America, as well as most of the notable cities in the U.S. She enjoyed being a homemaker in the ‘40s and ’50s but found time for dear friend Jean Garfield and weekly poker sessions with girlfriends including Evelyn Ford and Helene Vass; she became a very close friend of the late Agnes Moroney as well. Mary Agnes was also a good seamstress and sewed not only to augment the family wardrobe, but to create the intricate costumes required for the Judith Sproule School of the Dance Recital in which her daughters appeared.
In the ‘60s Mary Agnes cared for an aunt and uncle afflicted with Alzheimer’s, but it was an encounter with the late Johnny Lisotta, who sold her a Bible, that got her entrenched in her pilgrimages to Las Vegas. She remembered these trips until shortly before her death, and scattered them in between her travel abroad.
By 1972 Mary Agnes had become a grandmother and shopping for grandchildren was a real treat. During the ’80s she had also become involved in the Beaumont Women’s Club and Alhambra. Her Alhambra Christmas Party became a favorite part of the holiday season. On a cruise in South America, Mary Agnes struck up a friendship with a couple living in the same part of California as her oldest daughter. Ray and Mildred Farris became a second family and Mildred was a long-need companion for trips to San Francisco, Carmel, Reno and Las Vegas. They were also able to attend each others 50th wedding anniversary parties, very memorable events. But time was taking its toll and a shoulder replacement and back problems started to slow Mary Agnes down.
The ‘90s brought the death of her brother and that of her dear friend Mildred, but she still came to San Jose a couple of times a year, passing through Las Vegas of course. A near fatal illness and a broken hip in 1999 really put a damper on her vagabond lifestyle, and the millennium saw a little decline each year with the onset of Alzheimer’s becoming obvious by 2004. Her kidneys were failing as well and in spite of a terrific fight for life, finally gave out on January 9, 2006, 24 days after her 93rd birthday.
Mary Agnes was very much loved and will be terribly missed by her husband of 65 years, Matt M. Racki, Jr. a former Civil Engineer in Beaumont; a son, Matt M. Racki, III of Urbandale, IA and his wife Joan; daughters, Mary Agnes Racki of San Jose, CA and Paula M. Vogel of Cincinnati, OH; granddaughters, Susan P. Crane of Cincinnati, OH and her husband Andrew, Jennifer M. Hill of Chicago, IL and her husband Zach, and Julie C. Kline of Chicago IL; grandsons, Byron J. Racki of Appleton WI and his wife Tabitha, and David J. Racki of Urbandale, IL; great-grandsons, Jackson A. and Samuel B. Crane of Cincinnati, OH and Jack E. Racki of Appleton, WI.
Mary Agnes was a very straightforward and candid person who could cause great frustration and grief to those around her. She did not accept the saying “life isn’t perfect” especially when it came to her life, in which creature comforts played a major role. But she could also be very generous and caring, was a devout Catholic and devoted to the Blessed Mother and the Rosary. Many times she appeared selfish and self-centered, but this behavior was mainly insecurity about being loved. Now enjoying the infinite love of God Almighty, hopefully, she is saving us a place at the table of the Lord, a setting of true perfection.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 10:00 a.m. Friday, January 13, 2006 at Infant Jesus Catholic Church, Lumberton followed by burial at Magnolia Cemetery under the direction of Broussard’s, 2000 McFaddin, Beaumont. A Rosary will be recited 7:30 p.m. Thursday evening, January 12, 2006 at the Mortuary.
Memorial contributions may be made to Serra Club Seminary Fund, P. O. Box 842, Beaumont, Texas 77704.
