Mary Terpening

Mary Dawn Terpening

Mary Dawn Terpening was born June 10, 1952 in Artesia New Mexico. Mary passed away peacefully in El Paso Texas on September 16, 2023.

Shortly after she was married, she came to know Jesus of Nazareth as her Lord and Savior. As a child, she had done the Baptistry thing by walking to the front of the church and shaking the pastor’s hand, and then getting dunked under the water. Like most kids her age she just wanted to please her parents. After she got saved, at age 18, she influenced her new husband to come to the Lord. She had 3 kids who she dearly loved. In the mid 1980’s, she was halfway to a business degree with a 4.0 average grade when she decided to leave Texas Tech and transfer to South Plains College to major in Medical Records Technology. She became a certified DRG Coder.

 For the rest of her adult life before retirement, she was a DRG Coder, and she also taught coding at South Plains College. For a period of time in Lubbock, she helped the Parkridge Crisis Pregnancy Center. She also helped teach the “Special Friends” Sunday School class in Lubbock. In her 20’s she taught a kids Sunday School class at First Baptist Church in Artesia New Mexico. She also coached a kids basketball team at the church. After she retired, she spent a lot of time and money rescuing abandoned kittens by bottle feeding them, sometimes all night, until they were old enough to be adopted. Her one regret is not having the opportunity, due to her husband’s job, to spend more time with her grandchildren.

Mary Dawn Terpening is preceded in death by her father, David Simons and her mother, Mary Simons (Hearn).

Mary is survived by her beloved husband, Alan Terpening. Her children, Robert Terpening, David Terpening and Rita Harden. And her brother, Mike Simons. As well as her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Visitation services will be held at Ballard Funeral Home on Friday, September 29, 2023 from 2:00-6:00PM. Services for Mary will be held at Highland Baptist Church in Roswell New Mexico on Saturday, September 30, 2023 at 10:00 AM. Following interment will be held at the Woodbine Cemetery in Artesia New Mexico at 1:00PM.

Memorial contributions may be made in Mary’s honor to Parkridge Crisis Center 5203 79^th St. A, Lubbock, TX 79424, Pregnancy Help Center 610 W. Quay Ave., Artesia NM 88110 or Compassion International.