Maria Margaret Blon

A Tribute to the Life of Maria Blon Maria Blon lived a radiant life full of love, adventure, creativity, and kindness for over sixty years. On Monday, August 18th, 2025, her spirit peacefully transitioned to her next journey while at home, embraced by the love of her devoted husband, Thomas Blon. Maria was born in Manhattan to parents Sue and Bill Keane on November 18,1964. Years later, the family moved to Bronxville and then later to Churchill in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She went on to Penn State for her undergraduate degree where she met Tom, the love of her life. After marrying, they continued with their educations and Tom’s naval service in Virginia Beach and Maria finished her masters in Math Education at George Washington University. Maria was excited to begin her career as Math Professor at SUNY Orange, where she later taught yoga classes and helped to create the Future Teachers Association. Students of Maria’s appreciated her patient, encouraging, creative, hands-on, and supportive approaches to math education and mentoring. For 38 years, Maria and Tom shared a deeply loving and sacred marriage rooted in nature, growth, community, and adventure. Together as partners, they built a beautiful life and raised two cherished daughters, Carina and Anna. Maria and Tom’s love, friendship, and teamwork was an inspiration to many, and will forever continue to be. Together they uplifted everyone around them as teachers, advocates, mentors, and active members of countless communities they nurtured, while exploring and traveling the world, building gardens and homes, writing poetry, and tending to the earth. Raising Anna and Carina brought Maria so much joy, and she sought to support them in all of their dreams and endeavors. She led a Girl Scout troop and created so many adventures, crafts, and a sense of community for the girls and their families. Maria was a present, loving mom who created healthy meals from her garden, and organized fun outdoor adventures for her family. Maria’s heart was forever changed by the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, making many trips there as she devoted herself to supporting the lives of those who were impacted. Maria played a vital role in building and fundraising for the HEART in Haiti School with her daughter Carina and son in law Shad Saint Louis. Through training teachers, serving on the Board, and nurturing a vision of growth, she planted seeds of education and community that will continue to flourish for generations to come. Maria’s calling to uplift others flowed also into her passion for writing and self expression. Together with Tom, she wrote poetry that celebrated love, life and nature. Maria led and nurtured writing circles that gave encouragement and belonging to fellow writers, fostering community and connection. Through her published books—Living Passionately: 21 People Who Found Their Purpose and How You Can Too!, Hearts Blooming through Intuitive Mentoring, Create a Life You Love: by nurturing deeper relationships with yourself and others, and Haiku Journey- Maria shared the stories of many that reflected resilience, purpose, and love. Each page reflects her belief in the power of the human spirit, her devotion to helping others discover their light, and her unwavering passion for making a difference in the world. Maria’s respect and adoration for the earth was woven into everything she did. Gardening brought her peace and joy, and she delighted in sharing this love with others. She taught friends, mentees, and family how to tend the soil, exchanged seeds and plants as gifts of growth, and built community through these acts of care and renewal. She found great joy in capturing photos of flowers, trees, and animals, honoring the beauty of the natural world. Maria’s love and connection with her family, friends, and community was infinite, she supported all those around her wholeheartedly. She was proud and happy to be a supporter and encourager within all of these communities and others: Wolf Lake where she and Tom enjoyed summers and weekend trips, the Heart in Haiti School, The Hope Farm at SUNY Sullivan and other local farms and gardeners, SUNY Orange FTA, Well Worn Books, Yoga and healing arts Circles, BNI, and her neighborhood friends. Maria was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and daughter, and a gifted teacher and mentor, an artist, quilter, writer and a poet, a seeker of wisdom, a yoga teacher and Reiki practitioner, and a fierce protector and friend of the earth. She had an extraordinary gift for uplifting others, reminding everyone she met of their worth, talents, and infinite potential. Maria was brave, bold, incredibly strong, and was always looking to grow and learn. Maria’s legacy is one of rich and abundant love that continues to multiply. She inspired people with her kindness, faith, creativity, and courage. She taught us how to live with joy, gentleness, and reverence for the earth and for each other. She was a light that drew people together, building community, nurturing growth, and spreading positivity wherever she went. Her presence will forever be honored by her beloved Tom, mother Sue, brother Paul, daughters Anna and Carina, (Shad Saint Louis,) her precious grandchildren Alaina and Thomas, and the countless students, mentees, and friends whose lives she touched. May her spirit forever be blessed, and the love she shared so freely continue to ripple throughout the world. Maria and the family were very grateful to Hospice of Orange and Sullivan Counties, West Team, for the comfort, support, and care they provided. A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, August 31st at Martinez Morse Funeral Home in Middletown from 1 to 5 pm. Visiting hours will be from 1-3:30pm, and poetry, music, and personal celebrations of Maria’s life from 3:45-5pm. In Maria’s honor, guests are encouraged to wear white or vibrant colors and may bring a live plant or seeds to exchange with others—to reflect the radiant, growing light she shared with the world. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Maria’s memory to https://www.newhopecommunity.org/donate/, and the https://heartinhaiti.org/donate-to-the-heart-school/ At the request of the family please DO NOT send any cut flowers to the Funeral Home.

Maria Margaret Blon

November 18, 1964 - August 18, 2025