MaryJane (Knightly) Drake of Amherst passed away on April 16 at Baystate Hospital with her loving family at her side. MaryJane was 87 born on Sept. 4, 1935.  She was the daughter of Walter R and Mary M. (Kuzmeski) Knightly. She was a lifelong resident of Amherst having graduated from Amherst High.

M.J. as she was known to many had a short career as a telephone operator, then went on to becoming a domestic engineer after she married her high school sweetheart Robert (Bob) Drake, they had been married for 65 loving years at the time of Bobs death in Feb. 2021. Together they had and raised four children.  Besides taking pride in raising her children and tending to their home M.J. looked forward to hosting and decorating for all the holidays, especially Easter, and Christmas. Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day, and family summer birthdays were always celebrated in the backyard by the pool with a BBQ picnic.

Some of her hobbies were in the warm seasons starting with flower gardening then on to strawberry picking(many quarts) for making several batches of her strawberry jam for which she was sure family and friends got to enjoy. For the Christmas holiday, it was the numerous batches of fudge she so enjoyed making to box up and hand out to family and friends. Another favorite pastime was reading and trading books with friends.

MaryJane loved going to the beach especially Wells/Moody Maine, several family trips to St. Thomas V.I. were taken in the past, along with Hawaii and Florida. Her backyard pool was her favorite summer destination. She so looked forward to shopping for clothes and holiday decor keeping up with the latest styles and trends.

MaryJane was predeceased by her parents Walter and Mary, her three brothers Walter Jr.(Bunny), Tom,and Jim Knightly, and her husband Bob, along with many of her close friends.
Surviving her is her four children Ken, Cindy (Roland), Deb(Ed), and Scott with whom she lived with. MaryJane had seven grandchildren, Tammy(Christopher) Kelly(Matt), Greg, Linsey (Matt), Ally, Ken, and Mikayla  (Joel), and five great grands Ryan, Nic, Miranda, Adeline and Nathan, that brought her such joy and she so embraced every moment she had with them, also she was looking forward to her sixth great to be born soon.

At the request and wishes from MaryJane there will be no calling hours or funeral services.

Burial will be at the convenience of the family. Donations can be made in MaryJane’s memory to the American Heart Association, American Cancer Foundation, or a charity of your choice.

Please feel free to visit the memorial guest book at www.Douglassfuneral.com