Mary Mallon Nyman
On June 3rd, 2026, Mary Nyman passed away surrounded by her loving family.
Mary Mallon Nyman was born in Chicago Illinois on July 26th, 1935, and spent the first six weeks of her life in The Cradle Society nursery before going home with her adoptive parents, Emily Seiter and Horace Mallon, to Clarksville, Tennessee.
After graduating from National Cathedral School in 1953, Mary attended Wheaton College in Norton MA where she majored in English and minored in Art and French, and earned teaching certification in English and Art. In 1957, she was awarded an assistantship to the Boston University Graduate School English Department. It was there that she met Daniel C. Nyman, a Boston University law student. They married in 1959, bought a house on Buzzards Bay in Wareham, and raised five children. In addition to raising 5 children, Mary became a full time English teacher, sharing her passion for literature and writing with students over the course of 4 decades, in several settings, including Malden Public Schools, Boston University, Fisher Jr College, the University of Massachusetts, Quincy College (English and administration), Old Rochester Regional and Wareham High School.
While working at Wareham High School, Mary met Bob Brousseau and began a new chapter in her life. They became life partners, sharing their love of teaching, skiing, traveling, camping, etc.
Mary retired from full-time teaching in 1994, but continued working with college students throughout the 1990’s. In later years, Mary filled her days with many creative pursuits, including publishing several short stories, poems, and a novel; painting seascapes and landscapes; capturing nature’s beauty in photographs; and designing beautiful jewelry from nature’s gemstones. A lifelong learner, she also continued to hone her creative skills and share her enthusiasm with peers though art classes, creative writing groups, art and jewelry shows, providing instruction in “Creating Art Jewelry” at the Plymouth Guild for the Arts, and as part of the editing team for “Reflections”, an annual writing publication though the Academy for Lifelong Learning (A.L.L.) at Cape Cod University where she also participated in a poetry course for many years.
Notable literary accomplishments and awards include “Teaching with 50 Great Short Stories” (textbook companion to Milton Crane’s, editor, “50 Great Short Stories”), “Amos Goes to Smiling Hill Farm”, “High School Stories: Short Takes from the Writer’s Club”, “When the Leaves Fall” (Mom’s Choice Award recipient), “The Season’s Edge and Other Poems”, and annual contributions and editing for “Reflections” (Cape Cod University ALL program), Helen Myers Tate Award for Poetry (Wheaton College, 1955 and 1956), to name a few. She has also received recognition for her Art Jewelry Designs (Bourne-Wareham Art Association, 1st prize, 2015). For her lifetime achievements, she received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award (2018) and has been featured in the “Who’s Who in America” and “The Top 100 Registry of Business Leaders and Professionals” publications.
Professional memberships over the years include National Education Association (NEA), Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA), and Massachusetts Retired Teachers Association (MRTA). Also, co-founder and co-director of Good Shepherd Nursery School, director of BU Cape Cod Alumni Association, director and trustee of the Wareham Free Library, member of the Wareham Democratic Town Committee, and vice chair of the Wareham School Committee, and member of the Wareham Library Foundation.
In addition to her partner Bob Brousseau, Mary is survived by her children and grandchildren: Robert (spouse Susan) and children Sohrob and Yasmin; Emily (spouse Lynn); John (partner Cynthia), and children Emma, Hannah, and Brittany (spouse Patrick); Helen (spouse Janet) and children Sabrina, Eric (spouse Daniel), and Bobby (spouse Eva); and Daniel, and children Matthew (spouse Cat), Blake (spouse Trish), and Angel. Mary also leaves behind several great grandchildren. Mary was predeceased by her parents: Emily Seiter and Horace Mallon; her siblings: adopted brother Michael Mallon and biological half-sister JoAnne Flowers; and her former husband Daniel C. Nyman.
Relatives and friends are invited to visit on Tuesday, June 9, 2026 at Chapman Funerals & Cremations – Wareham, 2599 Cranberry Hwy., (Rt. 28), Wareham from 4 – 7 PM. Her funeral service will be held on Wednesday, June 10th at Church of the Good Shepherd, 74 High St., Wareham at 11 AM. Interment will be Thursday, June 11th in Agawam Cemetery, Stillman Memorial Dr., Wareham at 11 AM.
Flowers are always welcome, but in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Friends of the Wareham Free Library, P.O. Box 735, Wareham, MA 02571 or the Wareham Library Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 485, East Wareham, MA 02538.
For directions or to leave a message of condolence visit: www.chapmanfuneral.com
