Margaret Mary Dern

Margaret was born on January 19, 1926 in Chicago, Illinois, to immigrant parents from Czechoslovakia, John and Margaret Kubovich. She was the younger and only sibling of her beloved baby brother, Joseph, who was heartbreakingly killed by a drunk driver at the age of 5. She overcame this family tragedy, and the fact that English was not her first language, and became a registered nurse at the age of 19. While working at Mercy Hospital in Chicago, she caught the eye of a physician, Raymond Dern, who pursued her until she agreed to marry him. They wed on October 23, 1948, and remained married until Raymond’s death in 2001. Over the course of their 53-year marriage, they had six daughters and ten grandchildren. Sadly, her second child, Mary, was stillborn, and Margaret mourned that loss for her entire life.

After moving to Newport Beach in 1970, Margaret obtained her real estate license and was involved in many organizations, including the Hoag Hospital Foundation’s 552 Club, the Spyglass Hill Garden Club (she was always very proud of her cymbidium orchids), and the Balboa Power Squadron’s “Anchorettes.” Her greatest passions, however, were for her faith, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Virgin Mary, and she felt a strong personal responsibility to instill the teachings of the Catholic faith in her children. She was an active member of Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church, attended mass almost daily until she was no longer able, and was described by those who knew her as “a parish institution.” She served as a Eucharistic minister and taught catechism classes there for many years.

She is survived by five daughters—Kathryn, Marcy, Susan, Barbara, and Mary Louise—and nine grandchildren—Arnold, Margaret, Theresa, Alex, Michael, Matthew, Samuel, Joseph, and Hayden. She was preceded in death by her husband (Raymond), her second daughter (Mary), her grandson (Zachary), and all of her friends.

A Funeral Mass will be held on October 9, 2021, at 10:30 AM at Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church, 2100 Mar Vista Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660. In lieu of flowers, donations to Our Lady Queen of Angels would be appreciated.