Lemont, June 23, 2025 – Mary Jane Sykes, a devoted church member and loving mother known for her dedication to her family, passed away on June 23, 2025, at the age of 93 in Lemont, Illinois.
Born on January 7, 1932, in Calhoun City, Mississippi, Mary Jane was the daughter of John Lavert and Willie Hipp. After graduating from Calhoun City High School in 1950, she attended Holmes Junior College before beginning her career as a lab technician in Memphis, Tennessee, and Houston, Mississippi.
Mary Jane married Billy Gene Sykes in 1952 and together they raised three children. She was an active member of the Olympia Fields United Methodist Church and later the Lemont United Methodist Church, where she contributed as a Sunday school teacher and Adult Bible Study leader.
Mary Jane is survived by her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, sisters Louise and Billie Jean, and brother “Baby” John Hipp.
A visitation will be held at Lemont United Methodist Church on the morning of the memorial service. Private interment will follow at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery.
Memorial donations can be made in Mary Jane’s honor to the Alzheimer’s Association, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, or Lemont United Methodist Church.
Sympathy arrangements can be made through the online sympathy store.
Details for the visitation and memorial service are scheduled according to the notice provided by the family.
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