Mary Jane Martin Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Mary Jane (Evans) Martin, an intelligent, creative and incredibly industrious person, passed away, after a long and extremely fruitful time on this earth. Born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1929 Mary Jane was chosen to be in the “Major Work” program for gifted students. She attended Bowling Green University and Case Western Reserve—graduating with a BA. She went on to be an outstanding elementary school teacher and taught in the Head Start program in 1965, the year it was launched. In 1967, Mary Jane was hired as a reading specialist and consultant for the J.B. Lippincott Company in Indiana and in 1970 moved to Philadelphia as an editor at Lippincott Company; she worked on the Beginning to Read Write and Listen program. From there, she became an editor at Boston Educational Research Company in Boston, Scholastic, Inc. in New York, and for over 30 years she was Vice President and Editorial Director at Kirchoff/Wohlberg, retiring shortly before her 80th birthday. Mary Jane is credited with producing a wide range of educational books, programs and ancillary materials for young children—a highly-respected force in the educational publishing world. The list of her accomplishments is long and impressive. Chances are you, your children, or your grandchildren have used a program she had a part in developing. Mary Jane raised three girls with the help of her mother, Hattie Evans, and is survived by her children: Anne Miranda, Holly Pistone, Paula Yusem, and five grandchildren: Evan and Tyler Miranda, Kate and Paul Pistone, and Ian Yusem. Mary Jane passed away on October 5, 2019, in Allentown, PA. A private burial will be held in Highland Hills, Ohio. A Memorial Service will be announced at a later date and will be held at Luther Crest Retirement Communit Contributions may be made in Mary Jane’s memory to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation 26 Broadway, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10004.