Margaret C. Mays

Margaret Catherine Clancy Mays was born March 26, 1927 to the late John and Kathleen Clancy in Ann Arbor, MI, and she passed away at home in Hemet, CA, on May 1, 2015. She was predeceased by her husband of 62 years, Charles Mays, who passed away in July 2014. Margaret is survived by three children - John of Clayton, NC; Mary of San Francisco, CA; and Daniel of Hemet, CA. She is also survived by 9 grandchildren - Eric Favant of Raleigh, NC; Patrick Mays of Clayton, NC; Sara Mays of Denver, CO; Caroline Mays of Pomona, CA; Rebecca Leiner of Minneapolis, MN; Leah Leiner of San Francisco, CA; and Daniel, Michael, and Theresa Mays of Hemet, CA. Finally, Margaret is survived by a great-grandson, Sebastian Favant of Raleigh, NC.

Margaret grew up in Ann Arbor, MI. She enjoyed square dancing as a young woman. After graduating from high school, she attended St. Joseph Mercy Hospital nursing school where she became a Registered Nurse. Margaret worked as a nurse both before and after she married her husband, Charles, in December 1951. She lived a year in Cambridge MA before returning to Ann Arbor for 6 more years. She moved with her husband and three children to California in 1959, where she remained until her death other than two years in Maryland in the early 1970s. When her children started school Margaret quit nursing to become a full-time homemaker. She was a dedicated mother who drove her children to ballet lessons, sporting practices and events while they were growing up. When the children were younger, she assisted them with their homework and school projects. Margaret was proud that her three children graduated from college.

After her children left home, Margaret volunteered by assisting others for most of the rest of her life. For a number of years she helped feed developmentally disabled children at a nearby school in Glendale, CA. After her husband Charles retired and they moved to Riverside, CA, Margaret volunteered for more than 20 years five days a week at a local nursing home by helping residents who needed assistance eating and talking to residents who did not get many visitors. Margaret was a spiritual woman who attended daily Mass for many years and would attend Novenas and say the rosary as a regular part of her spiritual life. She was a proud Catholic who put her faith into action by helping others.

Margaret was sociable and loved to talk, both to family members and neighbors. For about 40 years, she and her husband took daily walks, and in her prime she could walk 13 minute miles. Everyone who walked with her used to complain about how fast she walked. After she turned 80, she slowed down considerably, but she still took her walks faithfully until she fell and broke a hip in the summer of 2011.

Margaret was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and daughter who will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her. May she find eternal rest with the Lord, and may she be reunited with the love of her life, Charles, forevermore.