Margaret Jean Leary

Margaret Jean Leary, 69, of Spring Valley, CA, was born August 25, 1948, and died November 6, 2017, after a long illness. She is survived by her husband of 49 years, Lt. Col. Steven E. Leary, USAF (Ret); her sister, Molly Latham; her five children, Kent Leary, Alice Dailey, Vangie Leary, Paul Leary, and Joyce Leary; three grandchildren, Mahlia Blakeboro, Adam Dailey, and Lauren Zimmer; and a large extended family. Margaret was born Margaret Latham in Chicago and moved with her family to California in 1957. She served as one of the small number of female programmers in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam Era, later receiving a bachelor’s degree from Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles in 1974. As a military spouse at home and abroad, she worked for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, sold insurance for Banker’s Life and USAA, and owned a small desktop publishing business. Margaret became a dedicated educator as a mid-life career, teaching English, History, and Theory of Knowledge at St. Philip the Apostle School in Suitland, MD, and Castle Park High School in Chula Vista, CA, before retiring in 2009. Margaret was a lifelong Los Angeles Dodger fan, fantastic cook, historical trivia buff, keeper of family ancestry, and lover of licorice. She was a gifted quilter and seamstress. She was an avid reader with a keen interest in literature, politics, and history, especially presidential history, the Civil War, Watergate, and the assassination of JFK. She leaves behind a family who love and miss her. Margaret will be buried at Miramar National Cemetery at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 21. The service is open to anyone who would like to attend. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the League of Women Voters and Doctors Without Borders.