Mary B. Lanford; Descendant of Pioneers

Mary Bell Lanford, a descendant of early California pioneers, died Thursday in Ojai. She was 84.

She was born Oct. 7, 1916, in Oxnard and was the daughter of John A. and Bertha Bell DeSerpa, who were both descendants of the early settlers of California.

She lived most of her life in Ventura and attended St. Catherine’s Academy, Ventura High School and UCLA.

In 1943, she met her future husband, Oscar Lanford, who was stationed in Ventura while in the Army. The couple married later that year.

She worked for Southern California Edison for several years. After the war she worked in the registrar’s office at the University of Tennessee, where her husband was earning his pharmacy degree.

She also taught piano and gave organ recitals in her home for friends and family.

She was a member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, the Kiwaniannes, and was a charter member of the Forty Leaguers of Ventura County.

She is survived by a sister, Elizabeth Embry of Ventura, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband in 1986 and a brother, John A. DeSerpa, in 1943.

A memorial service is scheduled at 11 a.m. today at the Joseph P. Reardon Funeral Home in Ventura, which is handling the arrangements.