Mae. C. Reynolds, 93, passed away peacefully and surrounded by love on Oct. 22, 2025.

Born in Medford, Massachusetts on March 4, 1932, Mae was the youngest of four children to Harry and Christine Anderson. Her parents came to America from Sweden and Denmark, and Mae was immensely proud of her Scandinavian roots, and the challenges they overcame to build a life for their family in the United States.

She earned her high school diploma at the age of 16, and attended Burdett College in Boston, where she graduated with a business degree. During this time, she met the love of her life, Charles Gilbert Reynolds, and they married in 1952. They purchased a home in Wakefield, Massachusetts, where they raised three sons, Thomas, Steven and Keith. Mae was a stay-at-home Mom, while Charlie (Gil) served as a Wakefield Police Officer. She loved to entertain friends, throw pool parties in their back yard, and host holiday events.

They began summering in New Harbor, Maine, where she and the boys would spend the summer at Sherwood Forest Campground, while Charlie commuted to Massachusetts for work. Their love for Maine continued to grow and they purchased a piece of land on Pemaquid Trail in 1973. In 1981 they entrusted their son Steven, a recent architectural graduate, to design and build their dream home, along with Charlie, their son Keith, and a group of family and friends. She often joked that the house cost her many cases of beer and gray hair.

Once the boys began high school, she became the administrative assistant for Victor Microwave, where she was employed until their youngest graduated high school. In 1985 they accepted a position as property managers of two waterfront hotels in Delray Beach, Florida, and began what would become a 40-year lifestyle of wintering in Florida, and summering in Maine. They fully retired in 1995 and purchased a condo at High Point East in Delray Beach, where they became immersed in the tight knit community and made countless friends that became their southern family. Summers were spent hosting family and friends at the beach, and they never missed an important moment in their children and grandchildren’s lives.

She and her true love celebrated 67 years of marriage before his passing in 2019. Losing Charlie was devastating, but her courage, strength, and zest for life forged on. She continued to live independently at their home in Pemaquid, and began wintering in Jekyll Island, Georgia with her son Steven and daughter in law Lori, where she became known as ‘Mama Mae’ to a whole new group of southern friends who fell in love with her.

Mae was the kind of person who lit up a room with her quick wit and sense of humor, which remained intact until she took her last breath at the age of 93. She was among the last of her generation to live, and painfully said good-bye to so many loved ones, including her beloved husband and her youngest son Keith, and yet, she somehow found the strength to celebrate all she had, rather than dwell on all she had lost.

Those who knew and loved her were blessed with a daily reminder of life’s most precious gifts. And not because she preached them, because she lived them: Family and friends first, no exceptions. Be a good listener. Don’t be afraid to be silly. Sing to an empty room. Be creative. Don’t act your age. Save everything -- it will come back in style someday. Don’t take life too seriously. Step outside your comfort zone as often as possible. Be content. Don’t be wasteful. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Live and let live. Be happy.

She will be greatly missed and leaves behind many loving fans, including two sons, Thomas and Steven; daughter-in-laws, Cathy and Lori; her precious grandchildren, Michael, Aimee, Derek, Scot, Gregory and Jillian; and great-grandchildren, Marie, Dylan, Brayden, Vivienne, Isabelle, and Lily Elizabeth; as well as nieces and nephews, and many friends.

The family wishes to extend a heartfelt thank you to the nurses and respiratory, and palliative care teams at Miles hospital Intermediate Care Unit, for the compassionate attention they gave Mae in her final days. They all loved her, and she loved them back. Thanks to all of them, Mae was blessed to leave this world feeling safe, loved, and well cared for.

Arrangements are under the direction and care of the Strong-Hancock Funeral Home, 612 Main Street, Damariscotta, ME 04543.  Condolences, and messages for her family, may be expressed by visiting: www.StrongHancock.com.