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Mary Ellen Yuhas, 83, of Bala Cynwyd, PA passed away on April 25, 2025 at home. She was born August 6, 1941 in Portsmouth, NH the daughter of Katherine Shoup Leith and Francis Leith. In her childhood she was active in many musical groups playing the clarinet which established her lifelong love of music. She was also an excellent student and in her free time loved trips to the beach. Mary Ellen graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1959 and went on the Emmanuel College in Boston, MA to earn a Bachelor’s degree in French. After college she worked for the National Security Agency in Washington, D.C. where she met her future husband, John Michael Yuhas. They married in 1965 and had two daughters. John’s work took them to Bar Harbor, Maine, Oak Ridge, Tennessee and Albuquerque, New Mexico before they finally settled in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. After John’s death in 1984, Mary Ellen returned to school and got a master’s in journalism from Temple University. She put this new training to good use as marketing manager for Kelly/Maiello Architects and Planners in Philadelphia, a job she loved for many years. In 1987 she married John Benedict Hagner and acquired four additional children. Their combined families now boast 13 grandchildren and one great grandchild. Together they enjoyed numerous travel adventures and spending summers at their camp on Joe Indian Pond in the Adirondacks. In addition to her work, Mary Ellen was dedicated to the communities where she lived through her volunteer work with the League of Women Voters, Bala Cynwyd Library, Abramson Committee at Penn, The Philadelphia Show, poll judge at local elections, and the Cosmopolitan Club of Philadelphia. Mary Ellen was a fabulous cook and everyone looked forward to being invited to dinner at her house or enjoying her contributions to pot lucks. Mary Ellen was a member of Saint Matthias Church in Bala Cynwyd and also regularly attended Mass at Saint Joseph’s University. Remaining to cherish her memory are her children: Elizabeth Yuhas, Katherine Yuhas, Anita Barker, Kathy Babcock, Beverly Darnell, and Paul Hagner; grandchildren: Laura Barker, Paul Barker, Christopher Barker, Stephanie Barker, Grace Babcock, Justine Babcock, Jack Darnell, Hannah Darnell, Addy Darnell, Mariah Everett, Elle McKitrick, Sam McKitrick and Eric Hagner; great-grandchild, Auden Barker; sister, Kathy Almazol; and brother, John Leith. Her Funeral Mass will be held at St. Matthias Church, 128 Bryn Mawr Ave, Bala Cynwyd, PA on Friday May 2, 2025 at 10:30 AM. Interment at Cavalry Cemetery in Portsmouth, NH on May 5, 2025. Memorial Donations may be directed to: The Clinic for Special Children (where Mary Ellen’s granddaughter, Mariah, did pediatric genetic research) Attn: Development P.O. Box 500 Intercourse, PA 17534 clinicforspecialchildren.org 717-687-9407

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Mary Ellen Yuhas

August 6, 1941 - April 25, 2025