Almost 80 years ago, Mr. and Mrs. O.F. Moon were told their newborn daughter Mary Margaret would not live through the night. She was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and severe respiratory problems and deformities of her right arm and leg.
That was almost 80 years ago, and today, Mary Margaret Moon states “I’m still here!” From the day she was born on Dec. 19, 1936, she has been determined to live life to its fullest, and her life story is quite remarkable.
Mary started to flourish even though the first 12 years of her life were spent at home, with her mother teaching her to read and write. She also taught her to help with the household chores and prepare food. When her grandpa brought tubs of cotton bolls to the house, Mary would pick the cotton from the bolls. She also learned to sew and embroider, making some of her own clothes. She also made numerous aprons, pillow cases, quilt tops and scarves and embroidered lovely designs on them.
When she was 13, she had surgery to straighten her leg to help her walk, and spent almost a year in the hospital recovering. Later she was able to use a one-arm crutch to help her walk with assistance. Mary attended school for the first time, receiving extensive speech and physical therapy at Charalanne School for Crippled Children in Birmingham, Ala. She completed the eighth grade, and at about 20 she attended Alabama Trade School. For her first paying job, she served as a clerk in a trailer park general store. She later worked for WAAY-TV Channel 31 in Huntsville as a reporter. She was provided with a scanner and as she went about her day if she heard anything on the scanner that was newsworthy, they would investigate it.
She has a deep love for babies, and even though she never married, she claims many as her own, including her 12 siblings.
When Mary was 52, her mother passed away. She had only lived with her parents, and now it was just she and her ailing father. She was confined to a wheelchair and at that time decided to move to McMinnville. In 1990 she started living with her sister and brother-in-law, Faye and Carl Malone. She decided she wanted to finish high school, and attended adult education classes to get her GED. However, it was not to be, she missed passing the test by two points.
The next big step in Mary’s life was when she decided to live on her own. She moved into Beersheba Tower, and learned to operate the elevator, laundry facilities, cook her own meals except for the one she got from Meals on Wheels, and clean her apartment. With her only having full use of one arm, turning the wheels of the chair were almost impossible. She had to use her feet to travel, so she couldn’t go outside very much. The day she got her electric wheelchair changed all that, and she is now able to go to the grocery store, bank, post office and to one of her favorite places, the Farmers Market. 
If Mary ever asks if you would like to play Rook, and offers a sweet smile, watch out! She has played Rook most of her life, using a waxed paper box to hold the cards, but now has a new card holder. She very much enjoys rummy, Bingo and watching Game Show Network, many times answering the questions before the contestants.
Mary loves her family and friends, but her first love is her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. She is a member of Madison Street Baptist Church, attending Sunday school and worship services.