Margaret M. Cheney

East Lansing, MI

The family of Margaret (Maggie) Cheney sadly announces her passing on March 5, 2014 at age 95. Born July 9, 1918 to Lelah Stewart Smith and Reuben Smith in Charlotte, Mi., Maggie was a graduate of Charlotte High School. She earned a B.A. at Albion College in 1939 with a major in art and interior design. She was tapped for Mortar Board and served as president of her chapter of Kappa Delta sorority. In 1942 she married Edward A. Cheney. They made their home in the Lansing area where Ed established a practice of orthodontics. At Ed’s passing in 1998 they had been married 56 years. Maggie was a charter member of the Sparrow Hospital Service Auxiliary and among a core group of volunteers who established the Sparrow Hospital Gift Shop in the 1950s. She was an active member of the First Presbyterian Church of Lansing and the Women’s Auxiliary of the Michigan Dental Association. With her family she was a lifelong summer resident at Burt Lake in Cheboygan Co., Mi. Her interests and involvements included golfing, music, sailing, participation in her book club, interior decorating, and serving as a buyer of merchandise for the hospital gift shop. She was a remarkable and dedicated wife,mother, and grandparent.

Surviving Maggie are her children Cynthia (Cheney) and Dave Foley, John and Janice (Lemise) Cheney, grandchildren Ben Foley, Betsy (Foley) Boyce, Jack Cheney, and Abigail Cheney. A memorial service will be scheduled to take place in the spring.

Donations can be sent to the First Presbyterian Church of Lansing, the Sparrow Hospital Service Auxiliary/Women’s Association, or the Burcham Hills Foundation.

The family is being served by Gorsline Runciman Funeral Homes, Lansing Chapel. Condolences and memories may be shared with the family at www.greastlansing.com