Mary Jane Sammons

CELEBRATION OF LIFE SERVICES update - Mary Jane (Green) Sammons, 83, of Milton, went to be with her Lord and Savior Jesus on Tuesday, May 12, 2020, at home, surrounded by family and close friends. Born in 1937 to Charles O. and Mildred C. (Truax) Green, she had battled Alzheimer's for 19 years. She is survived by her high school sweetheart and husband of 63 years, William T. Sammons, Sr, of Milton, and by her son, William T. Sammons, Jr, and his wife Julie Sammons, of Lewes, and by daughter in love, Bonny Sammons of Lincoln. Also surviving are grandchildren, Joshua Sammons and his wife, Bella of Seaford, and their sons Riley and Noah; Nicholas Sammons of Carlsbad, CA; Lola Sammons of Lewes, DE; Lcpl. Nadiya Sammons of Camp Pendleton, CA, and Mary Sammons of Lewes, DE. She also has one surviving sibling, Robert Green of Hartly. She was also deeply loved and cared for by several ladies, which permitted her to stay at home in the care and watch of her husband. Their love and care added richness to her years and years to her life. Mary Jane was an administrative assistant to the District Engineer with the Delaware Department of Transportation in Georgetown for 31 years, before retiring in 1990. Upon retiring, she assisted her husband, Bill, in founding Eagle's Nest Fellowship Church, and later Eagle's Nest Christian Academy, now part of Delmarva Christian Schools. She also helped her son, Bill Jr., with starting Delaware's first Christian radio station, WXPZ-FM, a precursor to WKNZ, known as 88.7 The Bridge. Mary Jane was also instrumental in the family-owned campground, formerly called Eagle's Nest Family Campground and now known as Deep Branch Family Campground near Milton. She was a founding member of the Delaware State Employee's Federal Credit Union, now Del One Federal Credit Union, and a president and secretary of that organization. She was a key ingredient, behind the scenes, in the success of every organization with which she was involved. Mary Jane was biological mother to only one son, William Jr., but was called Mom by hundreds of other people, beginning when she and her husband became youth leaders at Goshen United Methodist Church in Milton in 1973. Mary Jane and her husband later fostered 49 children and teenagers at a large home near Milford that they purchased solely to take in runaways and at-risk children. She was also Mom to many children and young adults who attended Eagle's Nest Fellowship Church. She had a gift for serving and loving people, with no judgement and made everyone feel known and important. One of Mary Jane's many gifts was hospitality. When company stopped in she could somehow whip up a dinner with no planning, using only the ingredients she had on hand, and she never ran out of anything. In the early 90's she used those skills to run the hospitality house for LambJam, a Christian music festival held annually at Eagle's Nest Family Campground. She led the team that cooked and fed hundreds of artists from all over the country, and LambJam built a national reputation for having the best food of any festival. She used her gift of serving with no fanfare, and was known to knit and crochet baby blankets, hats, sweaters, scarves and afghans as gifts for hundreds of babies and new parents. She loved to cook, bake and entertain, and especially enjoyed playing Pinochle. Mary Jane was a good person her entire life, but loved to share how her personal encounter with Jesus in 1973 dramatically changed her life, and the life of her husband, as they learned their goodness wasn't enough to get them into heaven. Together they asked Jesus to be their Savior and the impact of their lives has impacted literally tens of thousands of people in Delaware and beyond. She would want that impact to continue, so the family has requested that in lieu of flowers that contributions be made to Delmarva Christian Schools, 26631 Zion Church Road, Milton, DE 19968. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, graveside services at Henlopen Memorial Park in Milton were private. A Celebration of Life service will be held on Sunday, August 2, 2020 at Crossroad Community Church, 20684 State Forest Rd., Georgetown, DE. All those who attend must wear masks and adhere to gathering and social distancing protocols.