This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Oct. 14, 2011 - Services will be held Saturday morning for Anna May Slay, the mother of St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay. Mrs. Slay died Thursday morning after a long illness.
Many in her large family of 11 children -- including the mayor -- were at her side when she died, a spokeswoman said. The mayor's father, longtime Democratic activist Francis R. Slay, died in March.
Visitation is set for 9 a.m. Saturday at the near South Side complex that includes St. Raymond's Maronite Cathedral, 931 Lebanon Drive. Mass will celebrated at 11 a.m.
A statement from the mayor's office described Mrs. Slay as "a sweet, quiet woman with a core of steel." She played a significant role in the mayor's life. Even as an adult, Slay has said that he tried to visit his mother every morning.
Six years ago, the mayor declared May 8, 2005, as "Anna May Sobocinski Slay Day," in honor of his mother.
On his blog that day, the mayor portrayed his mother as "a St. Louisan to her bones: fair-minded; home-bodied; more cautious than reckless; a better listener than a speaker; and deeply in love with her family, the people, homes, and parks of her own city neighborhood."
He also recounted the blind date that led to his parents' marriage on Oct. 6, 1951.
