Mary Tisdale Ferguson

Mary Tisdale Wilson Ferguson, known to friends as “Tince,” graduated into the Kingdom of Heaven on Tuesday, May 22, 2018, surrounded by her family, at the age of 86. 

Long before becoming the matriarch of an extensive and loving family, she grew up in Rutherfordton, North Carolina before earning a Bachelor of Business Studies from Wake Forest University in 1954. 

Mary excelled in the business world.  She served her country as an intelligence analyst at the National Security Agency in Washington, DC, where she met her husband, Judge Paul Franklin Ferguson.  They married in 1955 and moved to Southeast Texas, where Mary taught business, bookkeeping, and typing in Alvin and Clear Creek.  She founded Texas Fidelity Title Company and issued thousands of title insurance policies in Brazoria County.  Mary was a highly respected real estate broker in Alvin and Pearland for many years, and her reputation for attention to detail cultivated a client base across Southeast Texas.  She was named Southeast Texas Realtor of the Year several times. 

For all of her professional achievements, Mary’s greatest accomplishment was her abiding faith in Jesus Christ.  She was active in First Baptist Church of Alvin and Second Baptist Church in Houston.  Mary set a Christian example for her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.  She loved sharing her daily Bible readings, cheering at family sporting events, coaching her husband’s golf swing, and organizing photo albums of family memories.  One of her favorite projects was researching her family’s genealogy and tracing the Wilson family back to the days of Abraham Lincoln’s roots in rural North Carolina. 

Mary was preceded in death by her parents, Hugh Mal and Ruth Wilson; her sister, Patsy Wilson; and her son, Timothy Ferguson.  She is survived by her husband of 62 years, Paul; brother, Hugh Wilson and wife, Martha; son, Chip Ferguson and wife, Michelle; daughter, Mary Suzanne Schaper; grandchildren, Ryan Schaper and wife, Rebekah; Michael Schaper and wife, Shannon; Cassie Adams and husband, Brenden; Katlyn Clark and husband, Rob; Trey Ferguson; Mary Catherine Schweer and husband, Ben; Timothy Ferguson and wife, Brittney; Mary Antonina Ferguson; and Nateli Ferguson; great-grandchildren, William, Catherine, and Allison Schaper; Mary Elizabeth and Lily Schweer, Jay Adams, and Stokes and Kate Clark; and many nieces, nephews, and friends. 

A celebration of her life will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, May 25, 2018, at Second Baptist Church at 6400 Woodway in Houston.  A reception will immediately follow.  A private graveside service will be held at Magnolia Cemetery in Beaumont.  The family would like to express our thanks to Dr. Louise McCullough, chief of Neurology at Memorial Hermann, for her friendship and care.  In lieu of flowers or memorial contributions, Judge Paul Ferguson asks for prayers for the family.