Mary Lou Banks, 78, died Saturday, May 24, 2025, at Riverside Care & Rehabilitation Center in Calhoun, Kentucky following a long illness. She was born in Princeton, Kentucky on August 28, 1946, to Melvin Banks and Ella Margaret Banks Franklin. The middle child of three sisters, Mary Lou was a 1964 graduate of Caldwell County High School. She studied at Murray State University before transferring to the University of Evansville, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Secondary Education in 1969, and a Master of Arts degree in Humanities in 1976.
Preceded in death by her parents and sisters, Elizabeth Franklin Cayce and Linda Lee Banks, Mary Lou is survived by son Hal Davis Cunningham (Nga) of San Diego, California; daughter Lauren Elizabeth Woolen of Murray, Kentucky; and granddaughter, Emma Cunningham. Mary Lou’s extended family includes nieces: Laura Michele (Butch) Watkins of Columbia, Kentucky; Marci Dee Cox of Madisonville, Kentucky; Whitni Cayce Stratemeyer (Daniel) of Paducah, Kentucky; nephews: Rodney (Wendy) Coleman of Madisonville, Kentucky; John (Kara) Cayce of Princeton, Kentucky; great nieces: Hailey (Micah) Pepper; Paige (Aaron) Brewer; Maddie (Logan) Haynes; and Lillie Elizabeth Cayce; great-nephews: Wyatt Coleman, Henry and Harrison Stratemeyer; and great-great-niece and nephew Evelyn Jane and Calvin Henry Brewer.
Private burial will be in Meeks Cemetery in Caldwell County, Kentucky. Cecil Funeral Home will be in charge of arrangements.
Donations in Mary Lou’s memory may be made to support residents and staff of long-term care facilities in your area, or to the charity of your choosing.
Her family is grateful to the staff of Riverside in Calhoun for their care of and kindness to Mary Lou.