Mary Mayhew Owens, known as Polly, longtime resident of Norfolk, died on June 3, 2023, at the age of 80 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Virginia Beach.

Born on July 20, 1942, to Charles and Catherine Mayhew, Polly spent her childhood in Roanoke, where she loved ballet, piano, and playing with her younger sister Catherine and best friend Archer Dodson Heinzen. She attended high school at Stuart Hall in Staunton before enrolling at William & Mary, where Polly was president of her sorority Pi Beta Phi, played on the tennis team, and participated in theater productions. She received her B.A. in French in 1964.

It was at William & Mary that she met Alan Patrick Owens, whom she married shortly after graduation. Together they established their home in Norfolk, where Alan began his legal practice and Polly became a homemaker, and where they raised their beloved children, Rachel and Brian.

Polly embraced her adopted community of Norfolk with generosity and enthusiasm, taking on a variety of roles reflecting the breadth of her interests, her unflagging energy, and her commitment to service and family: kindergarten teacher at West Ghent School; president of the Junior League; docent at Chrysler Museum; Girl Scout leader; and tireless school volunteer. When her daughter pursued studies in Germany, Polly discovered and fell in love with Norfolk’s sister city, Wilhelmshaven, which she came to visit many times throughout her life. She channeled that affection into a passionate advocacy for the Sister Cities organization, spending the next 35 years facilitating exchanges between Norfolk and its sister cities. For her devoted service to Sister Cities, Polly was recognized in 2017 with the Global Citizen Award.

Polly’s other cherished places were the garden, where her skills earned her the qualification of Master Gardener, and her mother’s home state of Vermont, where she spent many happy summers first as a child and later as an adult at the family’s cabin on Lake Champlain.

In the 1980’s, she worked for City of Norfolk’s Downtown Association, focusing on the redevelopment and vitalization of the city. After her marriage ended, she returned to working for Norfolk, this time at City Hall. With her much loved cat, Tuxedo, she remained a devoted resident of the Ghent neighborhood for the remainder of her life until 2020, when a fall required her to move to assisted care.

Polly was an ambassador for Norfolk and counted all its residents as her friends. She will be missed by all whose lives she touched in her philanthropic work. She is remembered fondly for her generosity of spirit, her smile, and her bubbly personality.

She is survived by her daughter Rachel Owens of Galapagar, Spain; her son Brian Owens (Josie) of Minneapolis, Minnesota and Phoenix, Arizona; her grandchildren Emma and Jack Owens and Sarah Gravina; her sister Cathy Hubbard (Joe) of Glendale, Ohio; and her former spouse, Alan Patrick Owens. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Norfolk Sister City Association are appreciated. There will be a Celebration of Life on July 22.