Mary Noble Graves

Mary Ross Noble Graves, age 90, passed away on September 24, 2026, in Kemp, Texas, bringing to a close a long life centered on family, home, and the East Texas community where her story began.

Mary was born December 3, 1935, in Eustace, Texas, to Robert Cecil Noble and Bernice Bivian Smith. She spent her earliest years in Eustace surrounded by a large extended family whose memories and stories remained important to her throughout her life.

In 1941, when Mary was six years old, her family moved to Wichita, Kansas, as the United States prepared for World War II. Her father went to work at Beechcraft, while her mother worked at Boeing building aircraft for the war effort. Mary attended kindergarten, first grade and second grade in Wichita.

In 1943, Mary returned for a time to Eustace, where she lived with her grandparents while her parents continued their wartime aircraft work in Kansas. Her stay in Texas was brief, however, and she soon returned to Wichita to be with her parents. When World War II ended in 1945, the Noble family came home to Eustace for good.

Mary completed her education in Eustace and graduated from Eustace High School in 1954. After graduation, she left her small hometown for Dallas, where she shared an apartment with a high school friend. It was during this new chapter of her life that she met the man who would become her soulmate and husband, Hugh Allen (H.A.) Graves.

Mary and H.A. married in 1955 and began their life together in Dallas. Their son, David, was born in 1956. In 1962, the family moved to Farmers Branch, where they remained until relocating to nearby Carrollton in 1973.

After many years in the Dallas area, Mary and H.A. began looking toward retirement and Eustace had always remained home in Mary's heart. In 1990, they purchased land in Eustace and built their retirement home, bringing Mary back to the hometown where her life had begun. She would remain there for the rest of her life.

Mary devoted herself above all else to her family. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother who took tremendous pride in her son and grandchildren. Family was never simply a part of Mary's life—it was at the center of it. She frequently spoke of her childhood in Eustace and of growing up surrounded by brothers, grandparents, cousins and extended family. Those memories stayed with her throughout her life and helped shape the importance she placed on keeping family close.

One of Mary's greatest joys in her later years was living to welcome her great-grandson, Levi, into the family. His birth was especially meaningful to her and added another generation to the family she loved so dearly.

Mary had many talents and interests. She loved working in her garden and devoted countless hours to caring for it. She played the piano and was an accomplished oil painter with a lifelong appreciation for art. She especially loved the art and culture of the American Southwest and assembled an extensive collection of Southwestern and Native American jewelry.

Mary and H.A. also enjoyed traveling, with New Mexico, Colorado and Hawaii holding particularly special places in their hearts. Their trips west combined Mary's appreciation for beautiful scenery, Southwestern art and the enjoyment of simply being together.

After 66 years of marriage, Mary lost her beloved husband, H.A., in 2021. She continued to make her home in Eustace, surrounded by the memories of the life they had built together.

Mary is survived by her son, David Allen Graves and his wife, Marlene, of the Kaufman, Texas, area; grandson Christopher Allen Graves and his wife, Tera, and their son, Mary's great-grandson, Levi Allen Graves, of the Farmersville, Texas, area; step-grandson James Julian Irey and his wife, Priscilla, of Groton, Connecticut; her brother, Max Noble, of Eustace, Texas; and her half-brother, Kenny Bob Berry and his wife Beverly, of Cloudcroft, New Mexico and numerous nieces and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her husband, H.A. Graves; her father, Robert Cecil Noble, who died in 1987; her mother, Bernice Bivian Smith Noble, who died in 1971; half-brother Joe Bob Berry, who died in 1958 and her grandparents, Robert Noble and Mary Ramsey Noble, and Ross Smith and Mary Key Smith.

Mary lived through remarkable changes in the world—from a childhood shaped by World War II to seeing four generations of her family together—but the things that mattered most to her remained wonderfully constant: family, home, memories, gardens, art and the people she loved.

Those who knew Mary will remember a woman deeply devoted to her family and proud of the generations that followed her. Her greatest legacy can be found not in possessions or accomplishments, but in the family she loved so much and, in the memories, carried forward by those fortunate enough to call her Mom, Grandmother and Great-Grandmother.