Mary Kathleen “Mary Kay” Jordan Fleming

Mary Kathleen “Mary Kay” Jordan Fleming, age 70, of Crescent Springs, KY, died on May 20, 2025, at home surrounded by her loving family. Mary Kay remained strong in mind and faith until her final moment on Earth.

Mary Kay was immensely dedicated to and fiercely loved by her family. She was born to her beloved parents, the late Thomas E. Jordan and Mary Catherine Jordan (Snyder) in Covington, KY. She was preceded in death by her brother Thomas A. “Buzz” Jordan and sister Mary Rita “Reet” Jordan. She is survived by her sister Mary Ann (Charles “Bud”) Baker and her brother William (Bill) Jordan. Mary Kay is survived by her spouse of 41 years, Donald A. Fleming, her son Stephen Fleming (and his wife, Kayla Wheeler), and her daughter Julia (Fleming) Beattie (and her husband, Lucas), along with three grandchildren she loved and treasured so dearly: Charlotte, Ezra, and Sophia. To her family, Mary Kay was the most encouraging, uplifting, steady, and wise woman they have ever known. She will have a lasting impact in the way she has shaped their lives and in the lifetime of love she provided them. She is survived by many family members within the Baker, Fox, Jordan, and Tagher families, including nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephews, and great-great nieces and nephews. Her large, loving family brought her immense joy, love, and laughs throughout her life. An orchestrator of family connectedness, Mary Kay was an organizer of large family gatherings, a family cookbook, and a recurring family newsletter. In these and many other ways, her legacy lives on in her large extended family, who she loved so dearly.

Throughout her life, Mary Kay was both a lover of and an advocate for education. Mary Kay was a proud graduate of Notre Dame Academy in Park Hills, Kentucky, where she met life-long friends and participated in Speech and Debate. Mary Kay was awarded a B.A. in Psychology and Special Education from Edgecliff College (now part of Xavier University). She then earned a Ph.D. in Psychology at the University of Cincinnati and conducted research at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in the Inborn Errors of Metabolism Program.

Mary Kay obtained a position as Instructor of Psychology at the College of Mount Saint Joseph and discovered a love of teaching. After influencing countless lives as a professor, academic advisor, mentor, colleague, friend, and listening ear, she retired as Professor Emerita of Psychology at Mount Saint Joseph University. Her career spanned almost 40 years of teaching and service to the university, including development and implementation of a system for evaluation of student learning outcomes at the university, striving for and achieving a better future at an institution she loved. Child Development was one of her areas of special academic interest which was also manifest at home, considering her pride in the accomplishments of her two children, who also went on to earn doctoral degrees.

As a community member, Mary Kay was a dedicated advocate across many causes and organizations. Avocations included supporting her children and community by volunteering (typically taking on leadership roles) in Cub Scouts, tutoring, school board of education, marriage preparation, and coaching robotics. Her iSPACE Lego Robotics team won the state championships in Ohio twice and placed in the top five at the National Championships at the Astrodome. She created the team and coached it – making everything happen because that was the only way her son and his friends could participate. Mary Kay continued to volunteer at tournaments for years after her team aged out.

In retirement Mary Kay savored her time doting on her three beloved grandchildren. This brought together her academic passion for fostering and marveling in the development of the young mind and her personal passion of her deep love for her family. She soaked in every moment with her grandchildren; until her last breath they brought her comfort and happiness. This profound joy in her life was cut short by cancer and is a loss hard to bear.

Mary Kay also used her retirement to shape a lifelong gift for writing into a second vocation. Her inborn sense of humor, curious skill, and capacity for endless editing transformed her into an award-winning humor essayist. She came to love working with other writers in numerous groups, workshops, classes, and retreats. Her writing brings laughter (and profound insight) to many, and will for years to come.

Mary Kay touched countless lives with the unique and powerful way she cared about, celebrated, and believed deeply in people. She was a critical thinker with an ability to understand and appreciate different points of view. Mary Kay leaves a beautiful, lasting legacy.

Please contact the family for information about arrangements for her memorial service ([email protected]).

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to: Notre Dame Academy, Park Hills, KY (www.ndapandas.org); iSPACE (www.iSPACEstem.org); Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop (https://www.givecampus.com/campaigns/7956/donations/new Designation: “Erma Bombeck Workshop” and Comment: “memorial gift for Mary Kay Fleming”); or the Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation (www.cholangiocarcinoma.org).