Mary Virginia Lloyd Bradley, a retired mortician who co-owned a Dundalk funeral home and was active in environmental causes, died of a respiratory illness June 9 at the Blakehurst Retirement Community. She was 92.
Born Mary Virginia Lloyd in Baltimore and raised on Howard Street in Charles Village, she was the daughter of Dr. Howard Huntley Lloyd, who was chairman of the chemistry department at Goucher College. Her mother was the former Mary Gladding Lloyd, who taught piano at the Peabody Conservatory. She spent summers at Emory Grove in Glyndon.
She was a 1940 graduate of the Park School, where she was captain of the school's field hockey team and class president. She scored 147 points during a seven-game basketball run. She was also a top Park School tennis player and was frequently mentioned in The Baltimore Sun. She then attended Goucher, where she was also active in athletics.
She was an All-American field hockey player, and also played field hockey with the Mount Washington Weekend Team.
In 1947, she married Walter Brooks Bradley and moved to Dundalk, where she co-owned and operated the Bradley Funeral Home.
"From the beginning my mother assisted my father in the funeral business," said her daughter, Linda Bradley Liotta of Bethesda. "She was highly organized and genuinely enjoyed people."
Mrs. Bradley got her mortician's license and ran the business when her husband, a Baltimore County Council member, was busy with other duties. She and her husband also established Maryland Cremation Inc.
After her husband's death in 1985, she ran the funeral home until retiring in 1989.
In 1970, Mrs. Bradley began a Wednesday night series of talks, featuring guest speakers, to address the environmental health of Dundalk. Well-connected politically, she brought numerous elected officials to her community forums.
"Make no mistake, this Mrs. Bradley is a persuasive woman, refined, articulate, a total charmer of the old school who would have to actively work at it to be unpleasant," said a 1970 profile in The Evening Sun.
Mrs. Bradley discussed the environmental issues Dundalk faced and noted that there was much work to be done to correct local pollution. She also praised her community.
"We've lived in Dundalk for 20 years," she said in the article. "People here are easy to live with. They are uncomplicated. Nobody tries to outdo anybody else. I like it very much."
Mrs. Bradley was a member of Dundalk United Methodist Church. She was a founder of Dundalk Community College, the Bykota Senior Center in Towson and the Atease Senior Center in Dundalk.
"The idea for the Atease Senior Center came about out of the concern for the seniors in the community," said her daughter. "Initially the group met at the Dundalk Methodist Church, but within five years it had outgrown that site and moved to Fort Holabird on Dundalk Avenue."
Mrs. Bradley enjoyed playing bridge, antiquing, refinishing furniture and solving crossword puzzles. She gardened and spent time on a family cabin cruiser. She had a vacation home in Sherwood, and played golf at the Sparrows Point Country Club and at the Baltimore Country Club.
Mrs. Bradley moved to the Blakehurst community in 2008.
"My mother was a quietly amazing woman," her daughter said. "She was always kind, loving and patient. She succeeded at everything she set her mind to."
Services will be held at 11 a.m. June 27 at Lovely Lane United Methodist Church, 2200 St. Paul St.
In addition to her daughter, survivors include a son, James Brooks Bradley of Cockeysville; two other daughters, Peggy Bradley Silver of Parkton and Cynthia Bradley Pritchard of Snow Hill; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.