Mary Katherine Herschede "Mary Kay" Collins, 86, of Pensacola, FL passed away peacefully on Saturday, June 21, 2025, after a long illness. She will be remembered as a devoted woman of God, as a faithful and loving wife, mother and grandmother, as a savvy homemaker and businesswoman. She possessed a beautiful smile. She will be greatly missed.

She was the first of seven children of Dick Herschede and Betty Strauss. Born and raised in Cincinnati, OH, she attended Mt. Notre Dame, a Catholic School, for all 12 years. In 1957, she enrolled in the College of New Rochelle, a Catholic women's College founded by Order of the Ursuline Nuns. Wanting to be a nun, she entered the Ursuline Order. Prior to final vows she discerned being a nun was not her calling, and she left the Order and joined he

r family who now lived in Starkville, MS because the headquarters of the family business, The Herschede Clock Company, was moved from Cincinnati to Starkville.

In her own words, "I faced a huge challenge and culture shock transitioning from life north of the Mason-Dixon Line and the contemplative traditions of the convent to college life at Mississippi State University, sorority life with Chi Omega sisters, and social life with Tom Collins." Mary Kay and Tom were engaged in August 1962 just before Tom entered the Air Force. They were married on December 27. 1962.

While Tom was serving the nation as a career USAF pilot, the couple had four sons: Thomas, David, Patrick, and Kevin. She was a primary caregiver because many of Tom's days consisted of long flights, weeklong alert duty, and overseas deployment for months at a time. She was an amazing homemaker and loved her sons dearly. When her children were younger, she helped with homemade Halloween costumes, homework, class projects, attending sports events of her boys, and cooking amazing meals (including her weekly pizza that friends and family always looked forward to). She also loved spending time with her 8 grandchildren, making it a priority to attend nearly all their special occasions (birthdays, graduations, weddings, etc.) Christmas with the entire family was always memorable!

During the Air Force years, Mary Kay found time to become a Mary Kay consultant and with her success she moved on to other diverse activities, improving her sales and management skills. This led to becoming the manager of a large furniture store in Pittsburgh. She would earn a Master of Business Administration degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. She became an adjunct professor at the local SUNY University.

As Air Force retirement approached, both knew that New York was not the place for them. Both wanted to be closer to family, which meant moving to the south. Mary Kay accepted a job managing a furniture store that took her to Panama City. This required Mary Kay to train in Jackson, MS for nearly a year - leaving Tom to care for four children. What faith for her (along with sacrifice) to know Tom would be equipped to work and be primary caretaker of the boys!

Tom retired and joined Mary Kay in Panama City in the summer of 1984. She managed the store for five years, winning two weeklong vacations with Tom. After managing that store, she taught at Mosley High School and was an adjunct professor at Gulf Coast Community College.

In 2005, they built their dream home in Riverside Neighborhood. Mary Kay planned every room, making it the perfect place to enjoy retirement so her children and grandchildren would enjoy visiting. One of the highlights of the home was the dining room - which had the "Herschede Family Table" that could seat nearly 20 people!

Her catholic faith was central to her life. She was a daily communicant and served as Lector until she was no longer able. She volunteered in a variety of ways in each parish, but the ministry she most loved was serving the dying in Hospice. She was a six-year volunteer and one year she was named 'Volunteer of the year".

Tom and Mary Kay thoroughly enjoyed their golden years together. They treasured tailgating with friends and family at Mississippi State Football games, which they had season tickets for many years. Mississippi State was a special place for Mary Kay. She and Tom also made it a priority to visit a location that was significant for each President. They accomplished this goal. They visited 49 of the 50 states and the western provinces in Canada. The shortest trip was 45 days and the longest was 7 months. Mary Kay created beautiful and detailed logbooks that showed the many great places and experiences they enjoyed.

Mary Kay loved life. She made it a priority to spend time with others - taking true pleasure in the joy of making others happy. She had an infectious smile and made it a goal of hers to get others to smile.

Visitation will be held 5:00pm - 7:00pm Tuesday, June 24, 2025, at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, with a Rosary to be prayed at 6:30pm. Funeral Mass will be held 12:30pm Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, with Fr. Tom Collins celebrant. Interment will follow at Barrancas National Cemetery.

Live streams listed below for the Funeral Mass and Graveside Interment.

Mary Kay Collins Mass

Mary Kay Collins Interment