Mary "Bridge" Kearns Petty, 88, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., formerly a longtime resident of Peabody, Mass., wife of the late John Petty, died April 12 at the McGraw Hospice Center in Jacksonville, Fla. She was born on May 19, 1929, to Florence Ruffles Kearns and John Kearns in Danbury.

Mrs Petty grew up on the Kearns Dairy Farm in Sandy Hook and graduated from Newtown High School. She worked at Fairfield State Hospital in Connecticut until she got married on July 7, 1956, to John Petty, her loving husband of 60 years. Later in life, Mrs Petty was employed for 30 years as a sales associate in the toddler department at Macy's, formerly Jordan Marsh, in Peabody, Mass.

She had many hobbies; she loved to paint, sew, garden, golf, play tennis, bowl, ice skate, and play poker. Mrs Petty also loved to entertain her friends and family by the pool where she loved to pick blueberries and raspberries in her garden. She was a true farmer at heart. She was well known for baking her famous Jordan Marsh blueberry muffins, Toll House cookies, and pies. She pickled cucumbers and made tomato sauce fresh from the tomatoes in her garden.

Mrs Petty loved to spend Thursday nights at the Auction House in Middleton, Mass., where she was always looking for antiques and hidden treasures. She was one of the original members of the Centerfield Homemaker's Club in Peabody. She enjoyed playing poker with the "gang" every Saturday night. These poker games were a 50-year tradition. She participated in many activities at Arbor Terrace in Ponte Vedra Beach, where she lived the remaining years of her life.

Her two daughters and son-in-law, Joanne Petty of San Diego, Calif., and Sandra and Scott Brown of Ponte Vedra Beach; her siblings, Edward Kearns and his wife Lucille of Sandy Hook, Ruth Kearns Hunt and companion Lionel of Newtown, Martha Kearns Harshbarger and her husband Dick of Pawling, N.Y.; as well as her brother-in-law, Stanley Petty of Newbury, Mass., survive her.

Her brothers, William Kearns, Tom Kearns, and Jim Kearns; and her sister, Dorothy Kearns Bresson, predeceased her.

A Memorial Mass will be conducted at a later date in Peabody, Mass.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Arbor Terrace Employee Fund, 5125 Palm Valley Road, Ponte Vedra Beach FL 32082.