Mrs. Mary Hewitt Travali

August 14, 1937 - December 7, 2020

Mary Ellen Hewitt Travali, 83, of Inverness went to her heavenly home on December 7th 2020. Mary could fill up any room with her huge heart and big smile. She loved everyone. Her loving spirit will be missed by all who were fortunate enough to know her. Mary was born in Webster, Florida on August 14, 1937, the daughter of the late Willie Jonah Whitman and Lela Rose (Raulerson) Whitman. She grew up on a farm in Sumter County as part of a large and loving family with two brothers and four sisters. She graduated from Webster High School, where she was chosen the Most Athletic female her senior year, as a star basketball player. While in high school, she met the love of her life, Gene Hewitt. They were married June 12, 1955, and settled in Inverness shortly thereafter. Mary and Gene were quite a team together. They were true pillars of the community, always willing to help those in need. They owned and ran the Chevron Station across from the Citrus County courthouse for over 35 years. Many will remember seeing Mary at “The Station” and will fondly recall the smile on her face and her words of cheer. One of her claims-to-fame was getting to wash the great Elvis’ car during the local filming of one of his movies. Mary also ran the Greyhound and Trailways bus station for many years and helped thousands of people and packages come in and out of Citrus County. She was a member of The First United Methodist Church of Inverness and Beta Sigma Phi. Mary was a woman ahead of her time, a devoted wife and a wonderful mother who raised three blessed children while working full time. After Gene’s passing, she married William Travali. They had many wonderful years together where they perfected the art of karaoke with their karaoke family. Willie was a wonderful person and a great partner for Mary and they made beautiful music together. Her favorite song was “One Day at a Time” which she sang to perfection. In addition to Karaoke, Mary’s favorite thing to do was watch movies at home, where she ended all the good ones with the same heartfelt comment: “What a story!!” She gave her love unconditionally and will be remembered by all she touched for this special quality. She was a devoted wife, mother, sister, grandmother, and friend. She was preceded in death by her husband of 37 years, Gene Hewitt; her second husband of 13 years, Willie Travali; her siblings: Emma Newsome, Iona Smith, Marcelle Dunne, and Janet Story. Survivors include her brothers: Mac Whitman of Orlando and Dan Whitman of Webster; daughters: Tammi Dodge (Jeff), Indianapolis, IN, and Terri Hewitt-Safar (Mike), Naperville, IL; and son: Gene Leonard (Lenny) Hewitt, Jr. (Janet), Douglasville, GA. Mary was a wonderful grandmother to seven grandchildren who all adored watching movies with her and listening to her tell stories about their family history. These include Meagan Learey (Fred), Abbie Dodge, Spencer Dodge, Addison Safar, Adira Safar, Taylor Hewitt, and Foster Hewitt. Mary was fortunate enough to have a second family in the Travali’s including Willie’s four sons Willie Jr, Steven, Danny, and Christopher and his daughter Lisa Gonzalez, along with their numerous children and grandchildren. There will be a private service held for Mary due to COVID-19 considerations. A Celebration-of-Life for her is planned for mid-to-late 2021. Charitable donations can be made in Mary’s honor to the American Heart Association (www.heart.org) or the COVID-19 Relief Fund of Citrus County (https://www.citrusunitedway.org/COVID19-Relief-Fund-1-6592.html.