Mary Margaret Underwood Terp was born July 29, 1937, to Ruth and William Underwood. They were married 18 years before joyously welcoming their only child. Mary grew up in Kansas City Missouri.
She attended Benton Elementary School and Southeast High School where she graduated in 1955. She chose Baker University for her college and spent two years pursuing a teaching degree. She pledged Zeta Tau Alpha sorority as a freshman and loved her time living in the sorority house. After her freshman year of college, she returned home for the summer where she met Richard Terp, a young man from Nebraska who was working in Kansas City. He looked up her name in the church pew registry and gave her a call. They were married at Linwood United Methodist Church on August 17, 1957.
Mary attended the University of Nebraska for two semesters before moving to Denver Colorado where she and Dick made their first post college home and welcomed their first son, Jeffrey, in November of 1958. Soon after they moved back to Kansas City and made a happy home life for many years until a job moved them to Des Moines Iowa in 1964. Brad was born in 1965 and then Janae in 1969. They loved living in West Des Moines and Urbandale and recently moved to Scottish Rite Park in September of this year.
Mary became a PEO in 1969 joining Chapter JY, Iowa, and became a 50 year “Golden Girl” in 2019. She worked for 26 years at the PEO International Office in the Educational Loan Fund Department (ELF) where she made many life-long friends and made a difference in the lives of many young women helping them achieve their goal of a college education.
Post retirement she spent time as a docent at Salisbury House; started a Prayer Shawl Ministry at their church, volunteered at the Urbandale Public Library as well as the library at their church. Dick and Mary never sat idle and kept busy with their large group of friends playing games, having potlucks and sharing laughs. They loved traveling and always put money aside every month for a travel fund. She said her two favorite trips were around the British Iles and their trip to Switzerland. They spent over 20 winters traveling to Phoenix Arizona where they had many Iowa friends to keep them busy in the winter sunshine. Mary loved to sew and knit, and everyone knew there were always homemade cookies and treats in the house. She was a woman of deep faith and a member of the United Methodist Church her whole life.
In kindergarten, Mary became friends with her neighbor, Joyce (Sasse) Lapp and their friendship has been close for over 80 years. They exchanged birthday and Christmas gifts for many years-often unknowingly sending each other the same gifts! Not only is Joyce her oldest and dearest friend, but the closest thing to a sister a woman could ever ask for.
Mary said her greatest accomplishments were being a wife and mother. She would also include being a wonderful grandmother to Maggie, Andrew, Aaron and Adam and great grandmother to Josiana.
The family respectfully requests no flowers or plants, but instead to consider a memorial to the Mary Terp Scholarship Fund at University of Nebraska. 1010 Lincoln Mall Suite #300, Lincoln Nebraska 68508 to The University of Nebraska Foundation.
Mary leaves behind her loving husband of 67 years, Dick and her three children; Jeff (Eda), Brad, Janae Mitchell (Jon), grandchildren Margaret Novak (Matt), Andrew Terp, Aaron Mitchell, Adam Mitchell and great granddaughter, Josiana Novak.
A visitation will be held Friday evening from 4 to 6:30 at WDM United Methodist Church, 720 Grand Avenue. A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday at 10 am also at WDM UMC. The service will be live streamed on the church Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/WDMUMC. Following the service the burial will be held at Waukee Cemetery and friends are welcome to join the family.
