Obituary of Mary Jane Picard

Mary Jane Picard, 80, former member of the United States Foreign Service and retired U.S. Department of State Budget Analyst, died at Sunrise of Falls Church in Falls Church, Virginia, on November 20 of natural causes,Born in Berkeley, California, Mary Jane moved with her family to Sacramento where she attended Sacramento Junior College serving as editor of the college newspaper. After graduating in 1953, Mary Jane joined the United States Foreign Service. It was during her posting in Karachi, Pakistan, that she met and married fellow Foreign Service staffer, Hugo Picard. As a Foreign Service spouse, Mary Jane lived in Rome, Italy, Tokyo, Japan, Vienna, Austria, Geneva, Switzerland, and finally, Washington, D.C., where she made her home in 1969. In 1976, Mary Jane joined the U.S. Department of State as a secretary in the Bureau of Administration and worked her way up to Budget Analyst. She retired from the State Department in 1995. Mary Jane was known for her many passions. She loved to travel abroad. She taught herself to speak some Russian and then visited Russia three times. On one of these visits she crossed the country on the Trans Siberian Express and spent a couple of nights in a yurt in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. She was a voracious reader, especially of stories of mystery and espionage, sometimes reading through entire collections of favorite authors. She also loved movies, and we are pretty certain she saw every one ever made! She had an excellent eye for interior design and decorated her home with exquisite modern pieces. Mary Jane was perhaps best known for her love of animals, especially cats, often rescuing strays and giving them homes. In total she had twelve cats over the course of her life including six at one time. We, her daughters, are grateful for her kindness and generosity and for all she gave to us that contributed to our having our happy and fulfilling lives. She will be truly missed.She is survived by her two daughters, Michelle Picard of Arlington, Virginia, and Renee Picard of Oak Park, Illinois, and by two granddaughters, Claire Fleischer and Emma Fleischer. Please feel free to express your condolences here. In lieu of flowers, you may make a donation in her memory to the Friends of Homeless Animals, P.O. Box 417, Aldie, VA 20105 (703) 385-0225.