Mary McDaniel (nee Shaw), passed away peacefully on December 4, 2025, at the age of 67 in Southbury, CT, of a heart attack after a long battle with kidney disease and other health complications. She passed in the arms of her husband, the love of her life.

Mary was born in Geneva, New York, and spent her early years in upstate New York. A 1980 graduate of Wells College in Aurora, NY, with a degree in finance, her classmates remember her as a warm, outgoing, energetic, and fun-loving friend. Steadfastly loyal, she remained close to her "Wells sisters" for the rest of her life. Her 20th birthday, May 9th, 1978, was an especially auspicious day. Her Wells sisters claimed they could always remember her birthday because, on that spring day, the school awoke to a coating of snow and ice that had fallen overnight.  Mary dubbed her birthday "Frozen May 9th".

After graduation, Mary moved to New York City, where she began her career at Chemical Bank (now JPMorgan Chase) as a relationship manager in the Wealth Management Department. Mary embraced New York with vigor. She pursued an energetic lifestyle, swimming at the 96th Street Y and frequently walking the 50 blocks from Midtown, NY, to her apartment on the Upper East Side – often in high heels – and enjoying spending time with friends.

Mary met her husband, Bill, in New York, and they married on May 31, 1987. They moved to Connecticut soon thereafter.  She soon realized that her true calling was helping others. She received her master's degree in social work from New York University and embarked on a second career as a social worker and counselor, working with several agencies in Connecticut and in private practice.  Notably, after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001, she offered counselling services to afflicted New Yorkers.

Mary and Bill lived in Norwalk, CT, for over 20 years before retiring to Southbury, CT. They were inseparable in each other's lives; working, travelling, and enjoying life on the banks of Five Mile River with their two golden retrievers, Max and Maggie.  They were members of the Norwalk Yacht Club and enjoyed sailing on Long Island Sound.

Mary is survived by her husband, William B. McDaniel of Southbury, CT; her step-children, Catherine McDaniel of Waterbury, Brooks McDaniel of New Canaan, and Sarah McDaniel of Fairfield, CT, step-daughter-in-law Sarah, and step-grandchildren Ashleigh, Sophia, Charlotte and Abigail; her mother, Clara Davis of Cape Cod, MA and her brothers, Christopher Shaw (Dianna) of Rogers, AR and David Shaw (Tamie) of Bridgewater, MA.  Her father, Edward Culver Shaw, passed away in 2003 in Zurich, Switzerland.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her honor to the National Kidney Foundation, www.kidney.org.  A celebration of life ceremony is envisioned for the Spring. To leave an online condolence, please visit munsonloveterefuneralhome.com.