Mary Lou “Peggy” Martin McCloskey Hardie, a resident of New Orleans for ninety-one years passed away on February 7, 2019 at the age of one hundred and two. A native of Pascagoula, Mississippi, she and her family moved to New Orleans when she was a young girl. She was known to her family and friends as Peggy and to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren as Gita. She had a vibrant personality. She loved her family and the many friends that celebrated the joy of her long and well-lived life.
She was preceded in death by her parents Edward Bernard, Sr. and Martha Freeman Martin; her sister Jean Martin Wilson (Jack); her brother Edward Bernard Martin, Jr. (Althea Shultz) and her two husbands: Joseph McCloskey and William Tipton Hardie (who passed away in 1982 and 2001, respectively).
She is survived by her two sons: Edward Joseph McCloskey (Eugenie Anne Everett) and Hugh Martin McCloskey, her daughter: Mary Lou McCloskey O’Keefe (Michael), and two stepdaughters: Delia Lane Hardie and Kay Hardie Powell, eight grandchildren: Peter Joseph “P.J.” McCloskey (Jenny Ray) of Phoenix, AZ, Sean Patrick McCloskey (Paige Olmstead) of Charlotte, NC, Shannon McCloskey Able (Patrick), Connor McCloskey O’Keefe of Atlanta, GA, Thomas Martin O’Keefe, Lindsey Powell Vodanovich (Keith), Hunter Hardie Powell of Washington, D.C., Scott Sanders Powell (Sarah Skotty) and twelve great-grandchildren: Patrick Davison McCloskey, Hallie Everett McCloskey and Mae Martin McCloskey of Charlotte, Marlee Anne McCloskey and Claire Elizabeth McCloskey of Phoenix, Sydney McCloskey Able, Madison Anne Able and Patrick Joseph “P.J.” Able, Lane Hartley Vodanovich, Grace Ewing Vodanovich, Sanders Tipton Powell and William Edwards Powell.
A lifelong member of Saint Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church, Peggy was a 1933 graduate of Louise S. McGehee School. In 1937 she received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Sophie Newcomb College of Tulane University where she became a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity and served as its president in her senior year. She married Joseph McCloskey in 1942 and Bill Hardie in 1983. She was a board member of The Christian Women’s Exchange and Saint Anna’s Residence and a dedicated volunteer with Hermann Grima House, Junior League of New Orleans and Saint Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church.
The family is grateful to the entire Lambeth House Community for the warm and supportive environment in which Peggy thrived since becoming a resident in 1999. The friendliness of the residents, love and support of the Beanies and the commitment of the St. Anna’s at Lambeth staff were exceptional.
A memorial service at Saint Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church, 1545 State Street, New Orleans, LA will be held on February 13, 2019 at 3:00 p.m. preceded by visitation beginning at 1:30 p.m. Interment will be private.
The family invites you to share your thoughts, fond memories, and condolences online at www.lakelawnmetairie.com
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