Margaret Joan Usinger

Margaret Joan Evans arrived 3 months early on May 20, 1938, in Greeley Colorado to parents Virgil and Maxine (Levy) Evans weighing 1 lb. 2 oz. She had no eyebrows, lashes or fingernails. She wore her father’s handkerchiefs for diapers, came home in a shoe box and slept in a drawer. However small, she was tough and determined to catch up with her older 3 sisters fast.

Her family moved to Portland Oregon in 1940 so her father could work in the shipyards. They settled in a small suburb of Portland called St John’s. She attended James John Elementary and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1956. Margaret made several lifelong friends growing up in St Johns and especially loved attending reunions, catching up with her friends, laughing and fondly remembering old times.

Margaret met and married Bill Usinger in February 1957. They continued to live their lives in St Johns, raising their 4 children, Patrea Marie, Billie Michael, John David and Alena Helen there on the homestead they would call the Warren Street Retreat. The 3-block neighborhood was the perfect setting for their family for over 35 years. Margaret was a stay-at-home mom while raising her children, tending to the homestead. She was known for her generous spirit in others time of need, often making meals for families who suffered loss or illness. She would consider many neighbors family through the years on Warren Street. Some would call her out of the blue just to catch up and share laughs and memories of times gone by. She was a room mother for all her children in either kindergarten or 1st grade.

Margaret would find joy after her children were raised by working outside of the home, first at The Fishwife and then at Fred Meyers working in the deli department until her retirement in 2006.

Margaret loved a good deal and was good at finding them. She would shop all year round for bargains so her children would have a good Christmas, often forgetting what she had and ending up with way more than needed. The bread store, City liquidators, and the Bee Co and the Goodwill were some of her favorite stores. She and her friend Glenda loved Mondays at Goodwill where they would spend hours going through all the new donations from the weekend. Later in life it would be Fred Meyers and Grocery Outlet.

Anyone who knew Margaret knew that she was a lifelong fan of the Portland Trailblazers and she and Bill would host game watch parties at their home. Margaret met and befriended a neighbor who she found loved the Blazers as much as she did. Margaret was delighted when the neighbor invited her to home games, and the two went often until Margaret was not physically able to continue to attend. During Margaret’s last days her family would watch Blazer games with her. In true fan fashion Margaret waited and as soon as the game against the Indiana Pacers was over, she took her last breath.

Margaret will be remembered for her bread pudding, runza with au jus, Hazelnut creamer, stretching a dollar as far as it can go, her thoughtful ways, being a wonderful loving mother and grandmother, her love for her dog Lilly, being a good neighbor, her cute little laugh, her fabulous crock pot meals, as a favorite aunt, her Yeellows, yak at ya later’s, and of course her love of the Blazers. When you see two crows playing in the street or cawing in the trees, know that is Bill and Margaret together again.

Margaret is preceded in death by her parents, sisters, husband Bill. Survived by daughter Patrea Marie Kordosky (Gary), sons Billie Michael Jr and John David and daughter Alena Helen Heck (Darby), 6 grandchildren Gary Kordosky Jr, Jennifer Kordosky, Heather Maskel (Danny), Nathan Heck, Hailey Usinger and Natalie Heck plus 6 great grandchildren.