Mary Lou Osburn

Mary Lou Osburn, 100, of Grants Pass, died November 25, 2021 at her home.
She was born Mary Lou Heider on July 19, 1921 to Bill Heider and Lilian Louise (Ames) at Alta Bates Hospital in Berkeley California. She was the middle child, with an older brother and a younger sister.
At age 10, she was asked to participate in a study of 240 pre-teens by Harold and Mary Cover Jones of the University of California at Berkeley psychology department. The study extended into adulthood and parenthood.
She met her first husband, Konrad, through a cousin, and they were married the day after her high school graduation, June 17, 1939.
They had three daughters, Anne, Kathryn, and Marjorie. Combined, they gave her nine grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and six great-great-grandchildren.
Mary Lou was a homemaker and enjoyed selling Avon cosmetics. After Konrad died in 1969, she went back to school for her medical assistant license, which she received from De Anza Junior College in Cupertino, California.
She married John Duran in April 1971 and he died March 1974. In July 1977, she married Vaughn Osburn and he died in 2000.
Mary Lou’s medical training led to a position at Varian Associates in Palo Alto, California. She retired in 1987 after 13 years.
After retirement, Mary Lou moved to Grants Pass and enjoyed her membership in the Hugo Community Church. Throughout her life she loved dance and creative writing, including poems and stories. Her professor at De Anza thought her children’s story should be published.
Mary Lou celebrated her 100th birthday with family and her friends from church.
Private interment will be next to her husband, Konrad, at Oak Hill Memorial Park in San Jose, California.