Mary “Kane” White, age 86, passed away peacefully on August 27, 2026, in East Haven, CT.
Formerly of New Canaan, CT, and Nantucket, MA, Kane was born on August 26, 1940, in New York City. She attended the Nightingale-Bamford School before graduating from the Emma Willard School, attending Wheaton College, and graduating from Sarah Lawrence College, where she majored in Art History.
Married in 1961 to Richard Booth White, Kane lived a life filled with purpose and warmth and was deeply committed to world peace and transformation. A lover of poetry, literature, and gardening, Kane was a longtime member of the choir at the New Canaan First Presbyterian Church, where she was also a Steven’s Minister. She was also an avid volunteer who was dedicated to the many causes she cared about, including the Connecticut Labyrinth Project, the Landmark Worldwide, the World Hunger Project, and Staying Put in New Canaan, Connecticut.
Kane is survived by her loving daughters, Katherine Learned White Marsland of New Haven, CT, Anne (David) Collard of El Segundo, CA, and Leslie (Michael) White Siek of Burlington, CT; her sister, Phoebe (Ronald) MacAdams Ozuna of Pasadena, CA; as well as her grandchildren, Sarah Booth Marsland, Tristram Siek, and Charlotte, William, Theodore, and Henry Collard.
Kane was predeceased by her husband, Richard Booth White; her son, Richard Booth White, Jr.; her mother, Mary Peltz Perry; her father, Theodore Burgh Russell; her stepfather, Lewis Perry, Jr.; as well as her sister, Kate Russell Schmidt.
Celebrations of Kane’s life are planned to be held at The First Presbyterian Church in New Canaan, CT, and on Nantucket, MA, in the spring and summer of 2027.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Kane’s memory to Staying Put New Canaan and CT Hospice:
Staying Put
58 Pine Street
New Canaan, CT 06840
CT Hospice
100 Double Beach Road
Branford, CT 06405