Margaret McGowan Kilby

Margaret McGowan Kilby, 87, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, April 5, 2023, in Tallahassee, Florida. She was born February 20, 1936, in Atlanta, Georgia. It was in Atlanta that she met Donald Kilby, who was attending The Georgia Institute of Technology. They married September 12, 1953, and were married for 55 years until Don passed away on May 31, 2009.

Margaret provided the foundation for Don and his career, and for their four children, as they moved between five states, plus Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Margaret was active in the Junior League of Beaumont, Texas, and in Miami, Sarasota, and Tallahassee. She was an avid tennis player, and the sport gave her an opportunity to form lifetime friendships. Margaret was also active in the Tallahassee Garden Club. Her passion for gardening was unmatched, and her time in her yard was time for reflection. Margaret and Don loved to travel. Together they explored throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, and the Caribbean.

Margaret’s greatest joy was the family of four children that she and Don raised, and then her grandchildren. When her first grandson, a very young Brooks Rogers, was told he would be visiting his grandmother in Miami, he called her “Gramiami.” She loved it and that became her name for all her grandchildren.

Margaret is survived by daughter Laura and her husband Sam Rogers, Jr., of Tallahassee; daughter Karol and her husband Mike Sweeterman of Englewood; son Doug and his wife Lee Ann Kilby of Tallahassee; and son Brian and his wife Traci Kilby of Atlantic Beach. She treasured her grandchildren, Brooks, Donnie, Andy, Sarah, Garrett, Emily, Evan and Josiah. Margaret is also survived by her brother, Richard McGowan of Dunwoody, Georgia. She was predeceased by her parents, Oscar and Connie McGowan, and her grandson Brooks.

The family will receive friends at a visitation from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., EDT on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, at Culley’s MeadowWood Funeral Home (850-893-4177), 700 Timberline Road, Tallahassee. The graveside service will be for family members. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Thornwell Home for Children, 302 South Broad Street, Clinton, SC 29325.