Mary Key Harlan Bodkin, 93, of Bowling Green, Kentucky, died Friday April 14, 2017 at Bowling Green Medical Center after a short period of declining health.

Born to Robert Kane and Katie Key Harlan, she was a native of Bardwell, Kentucky. Mary Key was named after her mother’s older sister, a school teacher in Avon, Mississippi. During the depression, her father’s employment as a civil engineer took the family on 15 moves including living in Detroit, Michigan’s “Little Kentucky” three separate times. She graduated from Bardwell High School in 1941, and attended Murray State College for two years before working as a lab assistant at KY Ordinance Works near Paducah in quality control for making TNT. The day after her 20th birthday, she joined the Navy Reserves WAVES where she served as a certified lab technician in hospitals at Corpus Christi, Texas and Bremerton, Washington, home of the Pacific Fleet during WWII. In March of 1946, she returned to work in her father’s appliance store in Bardwell where she met Thomas Bodkin, a WWII Navy veteran. After marrying Thomas in Sept, they moved to Chicago, Illinois where he attended Rays Photography School. She worked as a lab technician at Mount Sinai Hospital and Tom worked at Marshall Field’s until Oct. 1947. After Tom’s graduation, they returned to Bardwell, KY, where Tom ran Bodkin’s Insurance Agency. Mary raised her three boys and eventually got her own agent license to help in the insurance business. She was active in the Bardwell Christian Church where she taught Sunday and Vacation Bible School. She served as a Cub Scout Den Mother. She was also a substitute school teacher in Carlisle County.

Upon retirement, they moved to Bowling Green, KY to be near their grandchildren. Mary was an active member of Forest Park Baptist Church where she served as an assistant librarian, member of the Doreas class, Senior Adult Fellowship, and Feed my Sheep Bible Study recently held in her home. She was an active member of the American Legion and the Warren County AARP.

She is survived by a son Frank M. Bodkin (Debra) and their son Nathan, and other grandchildren Dawn (Mike) Hawkins; Melissa (Brian) Bilyeu; Teressa (Shannon) Dowdy; Leigh Anne & Leslie Cumbee. Great grandchildren; Rylie, Trevor, Zane & Cade Hawkins; Hazel, Nash, Bo & Murphy Bilyeu; and Katie & Molly Dowdy. Great grandaughter Lexis (Hayden) Thomas and great great grandson Ashton. Sister-in-law Virginia Purkel. Mary Key was preceded in death by sons Chris Bodkin 1989, and Ken Bodkin 2010 and her brother Robert Harlan in 2003. The family would like to thank her beloved caregiver of 7 years, Wanda Morrow.

A memorial will take place on Saturday May 20 at 11:00AM at Forest Park Baptist Church. Expressions of sympathy may take the form of contributions to Samaritans Purse.org for Operation Christmas Child (013477).