Mary Jo Bumgarner Wike died unexpectedly after a short illness in Charles Town, West Virginia on July 28, 2025.  She was a longtime resident of Brevard, NC and maintained a home in Brevard even after she moved from the area.  She was born on April 27, 1933 in Love Field, NC (now part of Sylva) to Floyd K. and Viola McCall Bumgarner.

She was predeceased by her parents, her husband, Edwin Ray Wike, and two sisters, Marie Jamison and Jackie Drew.  She is survived by her son, Floyd Edwin Wike (Vicki) of Chapel Hill, NC; three grandchildren, Rachel Rowe (Phil) of Downers Grove, IL, John Wike (Jenny) of Northbrook, IL, and Molly Johnson (Jeremiah) of Alexandria, VA; and three great grandchildren, Clifford Rowe, Harry Wike and Josie Johnson.  She is also survived by a sister Barbara Jean Setzer of Waynesville, numerous nieces, nephews and dear cousins.

After working at Olin Corporation for eleven years she returned to college in the early 1960s.  She first attended Brevard College and then graduated from Western Carolina University with a double major in English and German.  She later completed a master's degree in counseling at WCU.

She was a career employee of the Federal government and finished her career working for the US Park Service in Harpers Ferry, WV.  She loved old houses and antique furniture.  She collected outsider art and counted several artists as close friends.    Her greatest pleasures were shopping for antiques, listening to classical music, and family get-togethers as occasions of spirited conversation and good food.

Burial service will be for the family on Friday, August 15, 2025, at 3:00 PM in the Blue Ridge Gardens of Memory.  There will a memorial service at Moody-Connolly Funeral Home located at 181 S Caldwell St. in Brevard on Saturday, August 16, 2025, at 3:30 PM.  In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to local animal shelters.

Online condolences may be left at www.moodyconnollyfuneralhome.com.