Mary Helen Merriman of Visalia, longtime friend of Sequoia Riverlands Trust, lost her battle with lung cancer on April 11, 2024. She was 72.
Mary found incredible peace and fulfillment in her happy place, exploring the Sierra Nevada, and dedicated considerable time to tracking birds with Tulare County Audubon Society and identifying rare plants with California Native Plant Society. She had a full life, but we are heartbroken by it being cut short.
An incredibly devoted caretaker, Mary worked as an ER nurse, then nurse practitioner, as well as helping care for her son and younger sister throughout their lives.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Richard Dougherty and Margaret (Scanlan) Dougherty, as well as her stepmother Alice (McCune) Dougherty.
Mary is survived by many loving family members including her son, Erik Merriman, brother Kenneth Dougherty, and sisters Cathy Iseman, Peggy Ryan, and Irene Kowal, as well as many nieces and nephews.
Mary will be remembered by her friends at SRT with a bronze plaque placed on a native granite boulder at SRT Dry Creek Preserve, near the entrance kiosk.
