Mary "Mazz" Elizabeth Azzarello LeFlore of Galveston passed away on Wednesday, April 6, 2022 at the age of 67 at home under the care of her family. After a long battle with lung cancer, she no doubt sped off from this world in her magenta golf cart with hot pink flames to bring a splash of color elsewhere.

Mary was born to Frank Azzarello, Jr. and Leone Grace Meyers Azzarello on June 1, 1954 in Houston, TX, the fifth of seven children, and attended St. Agnes Academy and the University of Houston. She was fond of declaring, "I got to Galveston as soon as I could!", which occurred after marriage to her husband, Leroy Wilson LeFlore, in 1975. Mary and Leroy met through mutual friends in high school and dated through his college years at TAMUG until marrying and settling happily into island life upon his graduation.

In Galveston, Mary and Leroy raised their three BOI daughters, Mary Alice, Laurel, and Anna, of whom they are very proud. As the wife of a seaman, she single-handedly raised the girls and managed the household for months at a stretch through most of their marriage, an extraordinary accomplishment for which her husband will be eternally in awe. Mary was beloved and at times rightfully exasperated by her three daughters, who remember their childhood as full of colorful adventures, led by a woman who could seamlessly weave together outings to touring art exhibits and theatrical shows as well as to the local pool and boat club, batten down the hatches every hurricane season, and get a gourmet meal on the table on school nights. In their adult years, they loved to cook with their mom, talk about recipes, and spend countless hours on the phone, gossiping and solving all the problems of the world. They will miss the eccentric care packages that arrived on random holidays, and their children will miss making beautiful artistic creations with "Granny Mazz."

Mary was an avid volunteer and active member of the community. At Trinity Episcopal School, which her daughters attended, she served for years as the art department assistant and occasional substitute teacher, regular driver for sports teams, and Girl Scout troop leader. Mary had an outgoing and disarming way about her, and many Trinity students over the years formed a relationship with "Mrs. LeFlore" that persisted into their adult years. She also invested decades as a board member of the Galveston Academic Excellence Booster Club and its "Top Fifty Students" annual award, a way of giving back after her own daughters were recipients of this award. Many islanders will also remember her involvement in local politics and the Galveston Art League.

Mary's great passion in life was cooking, and folks would crawl out of the woodwork to sit at her table for a plate of whatever was cookin', from the Italian and Creole dishes of her upbringing to the sweet baked goods she relished and perfected. There was never a dull moment at Mazz's dining table, and all dishes were served with a side of vivacious, offbeat, irreverent, and obstinate personality, along with plenty of libations. A lifelong pastime with her husband was the restoration of their great Victorian home, the Reymershoffer House in Galveston's East End Historic District, which they chose to paint mauve because she declared the word was fun to say and insisted that she would have "no chicken colors." She enjoyed many evenings out on the porch of their big purple house, rocking in his-and-her wicker chairs with her husband, tending potted plants, listening to birds, and yelling at drivers going the wrong way down their one-way street, a glass of rose in her hand and a crossword puzzle in her lap.

Mary is survived by her husband of 46 years, Leroy, her three "chickadees," Mary Alice LeFlore, Laurel Elissa LeFlore Matthew and husband Aaron Matthew, and Anna Katrina LeFlore-Paulsen and husband Ben Paulsen, and her five cherished "lamby-lamby-lambkin" grandchildren Eleanor and Calvin Matthew, and Jack, Lou, and Clara Jean Paulsen. Mary is also survived by sisters Janet Azzarello and the Honorable Mary Sean O'Reilly, Suggy Jacobs and husband Steve, Teresa See and husband Melvin, and brothers Jim Azzarello and wife Jeanette, and John Azzarello, and many beloved nephews and nieces. She is preceded in death by her parents, Frank and Grace Azzarello, brother Frank Azzarello III, and father- and mother-in-law, Louis and Carol Jean LeFlore.

A memorial for Mary will be held on Saturday, April 30, 11:00 am at Carnes Brothers Funeral Home, 1201 Tremont, Galveston, TX 77550. All are welcome and invited to share words and memories of Mary and the many lives she touched. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Galveston Academic Excellence Booster Club, sent to GAEBC at PO Box #3493 Galveston, TX, 77552 or through their website www.gaebclub.com .

Mary, Mom, Mazz, Mrs. LeFlore – we'll miss you and carry warm, wild, full-color, cherished memories of you in our hearts always. "Hope springs eternal!"