Mary Geiger was born the daughter of Jacob and Mary G. Schwenk. She was baptized and confirmed in the Lutheran Church and married a physician, Henry Geiger, in 1848. They moved to Philadelphia in 1852 and joined the German Baptist Brethren. Henry became a Brethren minister and developed a flourishing wholesale grocery business.
After Henry's death in 1885, Mary became philanthropist, contributing funds for Brethren church buildings in Philadelphia and other cities and supported Brethren colleges, orphanages, and mission programs. It was her financial support which paid the salary of T.T. Myers, the first full-time salaried pastor at the Philadelphia First Church beginning in April 1891.
Source: The Brethren Encyclopedia
