Margaret L. Kray

Margaret Kray was born in Fort William, Ontario, Canada on October 15th, 1919. She attended Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. In 1939 she married H.L. King Mason, a Canadian Army Officer and a graduate of the Royal Military College, also in Kingston.

While her husband was serving with distinction in Europe from 1942 through 1945, participating in the Normandy invasion and receiving the Member of the British Empire award, Margaret raised their two infant daughters, Dorothy and Nancy, in Toronto, Canada.

Following the war, King Mason continued his service in the Canadian Army, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In 1952, Colonel Mason resigned from the army and the family relocated to Westchester, California. After their daughters’ marriages – Nancy to William R. Castle, and Dorothy to Michael D. Smith – King and Margaret moved to Garden Grove, California and then to Sun City, California where, together, they managed Sun City Mobile Home Estates, overseeing its construction and its ongoing business operations.

Colonel Mason passed away in their Sun City home on the couple’s 41st wedding anniversary, December 27, 1980.

In 1988, Margaret introduced her family to Joseph Kray. They were married later that year, and they continued to reside in Sun City.

Margaret remained in Sun City following Mr. Kray’s passing in 1990 and the loss of her daughter, Nancy, in 2005. In 2010, Margaret relocated to Park Regency Retirement Home in La Habra, California where she passed away peacefully on May 25th, 2014.

Throughout her life, Margaret was devoted to her family and to her Church. While in Canada she attended several Anglican churches as the army moved the family from one posting to another. In California, she was an active member of the Episcopal Church. She attended: Holy Faith, Inglewood; St. Anselm of Canterbury, Garden Grove; Good Shepherd, Hemet; St. Andrews by-the-Lake, Lake Elsinore; St. Stephan’s, Sun City; and, most recently, St. Thomas, Hacienda Heights.

In addition to her daughter, Dorothy, and Son-in-Law, Mike, to whom she is “Mum”, Margaret leaves 7 grandchildren, who know her as “Grammy”: Richard Castle and Diane, Lynn St. Cyr and Chris, Donald Castle, David Smith and Kirstin, Brian Smith and Krista, Darcy Sprague and Steve, and Alan Smith and Karen. She also leaves eighteen great grandchildren who fondly refer to her as “GG”.

A gifted seamstress, Margaret assisted daughter Dorothy in making her own wedding dress. Margaret’s granddaughters were the recipients of hand smocked dresses, which remain treasured family heirlooms. Likewise, her knitting skill has produced countless sweaters, bonnets, and even has populated numerous Christmas nativity scenes. Those hand knit nativity characters are treated with special care -- even by the family cats!

Margaret was a joyous hostess. An attribute that combined well with her culinary skills, which earned her a “Recommended by Diners Club” plaque from her future son-in-law, Mike. That plaque survived several generations of refrigerators upon which it perched for more than a half century.

In addition, Margaret was also, a strong swimmer, a dedicated bridge player, an avid reader of newspapers and books, and a temperate lover of good scotch.

“Cheers, ‘Mum’, ‘Grammy’, ‘GG’, until we meet again. We love you.”

A funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, June 3rd at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 15694 Tetley Street, Hacienda Heights, California. Interment will follow at Forest Lawn Covina Hills, 21300 Via Verde Drive, Covina, California. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Funeraria del Angel, Chino, CA.

www.funerariadelangelchino.com