A life well lived

Mary Sue Rich poses on the Ocala downtown square. [Meagan Gumpert, MAVEN Photo + Film/Ocala Style file photo]

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Posted January 4, 2026 | By Susan Smiley-Height, [email protected]

The celebration of life for Mary Sue Rich on Jan. 3 was a glorious home-going.

As the sanctuary at Central Christian Church in northeast Ocala filled with guests, a combo of musicians and a choir filled the air with, at first, quiet melodies and hymns of praise.

Rich, who distinguished herself through 24 years of civic service as an Ocala City Councilwoman, the first Black female ever elected to the panel, lie in regal repose.

The floral arrangements were lush and abundant.

After a processional of close friends and family members made their way to seats, after paying last respects, several speakers ascended the stage.

At one point, a highly rousing version of “I’ll Fly Away” had the crowd on its feet, clapping and swaying in time.

The order of service included remarks from Dan Kuhn, the church’s executive pastor; an invocation by Rev. Dr. Chris Burney, from Greater St. Mark Primitive Baptist Church in Tallahassee; and scriptural readings from the old and New Testament by Rev. Jeffrey Dove of St. James AME Church in Orange Park and Rev. Octavius Smith of the Greater Grant Memorial AME Church in Jacksonville.

Rich was born in Ocala, where she was lovingly raised by adoptive parents. She was married to Franklin R. Rich for 52 years, until he died in 2011. She passed away in Ocala on Dec. 18 at the age of 85, surrounded by family members.

Mary Sue Rich earned a degree in criminal justice from the University of Central Florida and worked for the Florida Department of Corrections for 27 years. She was instrumental in starting 1st Step Inc. and the Racial Harmony Task Force. She received several distinguished service awards and was involved in numerous civic and professional organizations. On Jan. 10, 2023, the city of Ocala unveiled the Mary Sue Rich Community Center at Reed Place, at 1821 NW 21^st Ave., named in honor of her and community advocate Ruth Reed.

While Rich was known for a life filled with accomplishments, nothing meant more to her than family. She and her husband had four children, nine grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. On Saturday, their granddaughter, Jasmine Brown, spoke to those gathered.

“For Mary Sue Rich. Today we stand in love and gratitude for a woman whose name was strength, whose heart was service and whose life was a blessing to me. Mary Sue, an amazing woman in every sense of the word. A mother who gave endlessly, a grandmother whose love felt home, steady, warm and always present. She taught us without preaching, loved us without limits and showed us what it meant to give more than you take. Her hands were rarely still. They worked. They helped. Not just for her family, but for the entire city she cared for deeply,” Brown said in a softly measured cadence.

“Ocala knew her heart. It felt her dedication, her compassion and her pride. She gave her time, her energy and her voice to make her community stronger, kinder, better, because that was simply who she was. She believed in showing up and doing the work and leaving places better than she found them. And she did it again, and again, and again. To us, she was love in its purist form. She gave advice when we needed guidance, comfort when we needed peace and laughter when we needed light. Though we say goodbye today, her legacy does not leave us. It lives in the family she raised, in the values she passed down and, in the city forever touched by her care. Rest now Mammy. Your work here was meaningful. Your love was powerful in your life beautifully well lived,” Brown continued.

Numerous city and county officials, such as Ocala Mayor Ben Marciano and Police Chief Mike Balken, were seated in one area of the sanctuary. In leading off a series of speakers sharing reflections, Ocala City Councilman Ire Bethea spoke of Rich’s tenure, noting that at 24 years in her seat, she was the longest serving council person in the city’s history.

“She was very well respected by all,” Bethea said, which generated a rousing round of applause.

“She had the tenacity of a pitbull, but she was a very kind individual. She worked very hard for her community, for her city and for her state. Mrs. Rich was a history maker and a trail blazer,” he stated.

Retired judge Sandra Champ, who attended St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church with Rich, said Rich was not just a member, “she was a leader in the administration and upbuilding of our church.”

“As Robert Frost expressed, she also took the road less traveled, and that made all the difference,” Champ said.

“Mary Sue was a counselor to those who would receive her counseling. I was one of those who did, both in my personal and professional life of 30 years on the bench. She was truly a friend and a counselor to me. She etched her legacy into the very fabric of our church. She was, as Maya Angelou echoes, a phenomenal, a phenomenal woman. Goodnight, Mary Sue Rich. Rest in the arms of our savior,” Champ offered.

The Rev. Eric Cummings, vice-chair of the Marion County School Board, spoke next.

“The Honorable Mary Sue Rich was a true trailblazer. She had a vision for Ocala, called One Ocala,” he said, and asked all the local, regional and state officials in attendance to stand. As they rose, he said, sweeping his arm in their direction, “This is One Ocala. This is Mary Sue Rich. This is what she worked hard for.”

“As one of those elected officials, I came to love me some Mrs. Rich,” Cummings continued.

“Three things I loved about Mrs. Rich were her poise, her presence and her purpose. She walked in a way that preached without a pulpit. She was refined without being removed, confident without being cold and firm without being fearful. She did not shrink in rooms that were not built with her in mind. She stood tall in places where her presence made history uncomfortable. It was not just her posture; it was purposeful composure. It was the calm courage of a woman who knew who she was and why she was where she was,” he shared.

“She was intelligent, fearless, unfiltered, but always firm in her commitment to do what was right. She understood that being first is not about being famous, but it’s about being faithful. And she didn’t just hold the seat; she honored the seat. She didn’t just lead; she lifted. Her presence opened doors and then she stood there long enough that others, like me, could walk through those doors,” Cummings said, which again engendered a round of applause.

“Mary Sue Rich did not serve for seasons; she served for decades. And even in retirement, she refused to retire. She kept working, she kept advocating, she kept believing. She believed in inclusion when it was inconvenient. She stood for justice when it wasn’t trendy. She did the right thing when nobody was watching, and that’s what made her watch-worthy to me,” he added.

“The Honorable Mary Sue Rich was a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirt and a bold personality. She didn’t just leave memories, she left measurements. She didn’t just leave stories, she left standards. She didn’t just leave history, she left a foundation, and because she stood, we can stand. Because she spoke, we can speak. Because she served, we can serve — stronger, smarter and surer. Her life was not a footnote; it was a headline,” Cummings noted.

Among the speakers were Rich’s brother, Earl Darisaw, from New York, who talked about their early life together and urged the family to take care of each other going forward. Son-in-law Darryl McCray spoke of Rich and his marriage of 34 years to her daughter Vivian. He recalled how Rich would send care packages of food and tapes of television shows when he and his wife were stationed abroad on military duty.

Franklin Rich Jr., Mary Sue’s son, also spoke about how she would send him, or deliver in person, care packages when he was playing professional sports in Minnesota for many years. He also recalled how, while playing football for Vanguard High School in Ocala, he made one memorable play of sprinting 85 yards for a game-winning touchdown.

“She was running with me,” he said with a smile. “When I came out from under the pile, hers was one of the first faces I saw.

He said his mother was tough, but very nurturing.

“She was very encouraging and she always challenged and motivated,” he offered.

He said he always had to keep his grades up in order to participate in his beloved sports of football and basketball. He said his home in Ocala was “festive” and that all his friends hung out there.

A few years after his father died, Franklin Jr. moved back to Florida.

“And that’s the best gift of God to me, to spend with last years in Ocala has really, really blessed me,” he noted.

“She always told us to do the right thing for the right reason,” he continued. “She was always so fair. She was so honest. She always wanted the best for me and our family.”

In the memorial booklet offered to attendees, the family wrote to those who had offered love, support and kindness: “Your compassion has brought us comfort and strength and reminded us that we are not alone. We are truly grateful for each act of love shown to our family. May God bless each of you for keeping us lifted in prayer.”

Following the eulogy by Rev. Dr. Sha’leda Mirra, of St. Paul AME Church, and a formal recessional, with members of the Ocala Police Department as pallbearers, Mary Sue Rich was laid to rest at Faith Memorial Gardens in northwest Ocala.

“Well done good and faithful servant,” noted the memorial program.