Mrs. Mary Ellen Finley Dixon, 95, of Bryan, Texas, passed away peacefully at home on Friday, January 23, 2026. Mary Ellen was born in Hazlehurst, Georgia, on February 15, 1930. She lived there during her childhood and spent the last 59 years in Bryan, TX.

She is survived by her five children, Maya Dixon (Gary), James Dixon (Lanore), Tana Ryan, Dawn Gaston (Bill), and Toby Dixon (Cynthia), 11 grandchildren, 21 great grandchildren, her sister Martha, and brothers Arley and Art. She is preceded in death by her husband, Dr. James R. Dixon, her parents, Arley and Madelyn Finley, and siblings Grace, Madelyn, Joe, Bob, and Betty.

A gifted artist who traveled the world with her husband Jim, Mary chronicled her adventures as the wife of a herpetologist with hundreds of landscapes and comical caricatures. She lived her family-centered values with a kind-hearted and good-humored nature. Anyone who met her, including members of her church community and Jim’s graduate students at Texas A&M, quickly came to love her. Mary lived her faith in Jesus Christ. She welcomed all she met into her life and was quick to forge friendships.

Mary enjoyed challenges, be it a jar of snakes Jim placed in her lap on their first date or a competitive game of tennis, bowling, dominoes, spades or Gin Rummy. She was such a good sport that in 1985, Jim named a species of snake after her (Maryellen’s Ground Snake, Erythrolamprus maryellenae).

Mary earned her B.S. degree in Home Economics from University of Georgia (1951). She met Jim at a Marine Ball while visiting her sister in Costa Mesa, California. They were married in Costa Mesa in 1953. The two were inseparable until Jim’s death in 2015. After Jim passed, Mary lived a quiet life thoroughly enjoying indoor and outside activities, whether it was a game of dominos after lunch, having old friends stop by, taking walks, or just enjoying the sunshine in her backyard.

Mary was not only a passionate artist, but a champion of those who followed their dreams, be it in the sciences, art, or pursuit of faith. She is remembered as a loving and supportive mother and a gracious woman. Her legacy will continue through her family and those who knew her.

Mary’s memorial service will be held on Monday, February 16, at 11:00 AM at the First Baptist Church of College Station, Texas, at 2300 Welsh Street.