In Memoriam: Sigtenhorst, Mary Louise

In Memoriam: Sigtenhorst, Mary Louise

(1926-2024)

Mary Louise Sigtenhorst passed away July 2, 2024, at age 98, following a brief illness. She was a 70+-year member of ASM. 

Sigtenhorst was born on February 24, 1926, in Port Arthur, Texas. She lived a full life with a myriad of accomplishments, beginning with her graduation from high school at the age of only 16. She followed her high school diploma with a B.S. degree in microbiology from UT Austin in 1946 and a M.S. degree in biology from the University of Houston in 1950.

Her storied career in microbiology included teaching in academic institutions across Texas and Louisiana, authoring and co-authoring a number of academic papers in the field of bacteriology and heading the microbiology departments at both Providence and Hillcrest hospitals in Waco. Her love for her scientific career was undeniable, and she maintained her interests in the field and continued to add to her knowledge right up until the end of her life. 

Sigtenhorst's true joy was her family, which eventually grew to include a husband and 4 sons just as loud, funny and intelligent as she. Mary Louise was a respected scientist, devoted wife and mother, beloved grandmother, dedicated member of her church’s leadership, accomplished gardener, talented nature photographer, avid sports fan, scathing satirist, unintentional comedienne, and by many reports, “the most intimidating and interesting character any of us have ever met.”  Her son, Andries Sigtenhorst, notes, “She will be missed by everybody who ever met her, though the voice of reason in our heads sounds suspiciously like her Southern drawl.”

She was preceded in death by her parents, George Bryan and Mary Della Beene, and her husband of 25 years, Andries van den Sigtenhorst, M.D.

She is survived by her sister, Georgeann Andrus; her 4 sons, Andries Sigtenhorst and his partner Dana Harris, Karel Willem Hendrik Sigtenhorst, his wife Karen and daughter Madeline, Pieter Sigtenhorst, his wife Kathleen, their daughter Petra and stepson Christopher Bruner, and Dr. Georg Dirk Sigtenhorst, his wife Sharon and their daughter Alex. Sigtenhorst is also survived by a vast extended family of cousins, nieces, nephews and more.

Obituary Submitted by
Andries Sigtenhorst