Mrs. Margaret Mary Don (nee Gray)

On December 6, 2023, Margaret Mary Jonquil Don (nee Gray), beloved wife of 67 years of James Kaye Don; dear mother of Hilary I. Don (Mark Dewire), J.. Andrew Don (Anne Nickodem), Sophie A. Donpineo, Timothy J. Don and Jennifer M. Don; loving grandmother of Jane, Luke, Peter, Will, Andrew, Megan, Christian, Alex, Sage, Nathan, Lucy and Julius; loving great-grandmother of Samuel, Addison Margaret and Margot; dear cousin of Jennifer McCarthy A Funeral Mass will be offered at St. Ignatius Church 740 N. Calvert St. Balto., MD 21202 on Saturday, January 27, 2024 at 11:00 AM. Interment private. Please omit flowers. Memorials in her name may be made to Red Cloud Indian School or Room in the Inn. ********************************************************************************************************* On December 6, 2023, at 9:14 p.m., Margaret Don passed peacefully in her sleep to God’s divine kingdom. Eighty-eight years old, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend, she was surrounded at death by the family she created and nurtured in life for almost seventy years. Margaret died as she had lived: attuned to the sacred mystery of existence and the glory of God’s creation; quietly, humbly, fully embodying the virtues of faith, charity, and love; her very presence a bestowal of grace and blessings upon her loved ones and neighbors. Born on February 20, 1935, Margaret was raised by her mother, Joanna D’Arcy, in London during the war years. By the time she was eighteen, she spoke four languages and had traveled and lived throughout Europe, though she always considered London “home” and never lost the delightful English accent of her youth. She met her husband, James Don, on Venice’s Lido Beach during the summer of 1954; they were married in June of 1956 in New Haven, Connecticut; and their first child, Hilary, was born in 1958. They immediately set off as a family on a life filled with adventure, laughter, children, and friends. From 1958-67, Margaret and Jim lived and worked in various African nations and had three more children, Andrew, Sophie, and Timothy. They returned to the States in 1967 and settled briefly in Stamford, Connecticut, before moving to Potomac, Maryland, where Margaret had the last of her five children, Jennifer, in 1971. In 1982 the family moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where Margaret became deeply involved in social justice issues. With Father Charles Strobel, she founded Room in the Inn, a charitable organization dedicated to serving the needs of Nashville’s homeless population. One of Margaret’s greatest personal legacies, the organization is active to this day. In 1991 the family returned to the Washington, D.C., area and settled in a house overlooking the South River in Annapolis, Maryland. Fondly described by Margaret as her “heart’s home,” 412 Ferry Point Road was a magical place, full of delicious smells, warm sunlight, roaring fires, children, books, and toys. At 412, Margaret continued to dedicate herself to family, friends, and faith, giving her time and energy to raising her grandchildren, beautifying her garden, ennobling anyone who entered her presence, and praying for peace, justice, and the souls of her beloved at church every Sunday and before every meal. In 2019 Margaret and Jim moved to Roland Park Place, a retirement facility in Baltimore to whose staff the family is deeply grateful for providing the level of care and kindness to Margaret in her final years that she herself provided to others throughout her life. Margaret’s life was animated by her Catholic faith, and it opened in her a loving embrace for believers and non-believers alike. She welcomed all to her home and her table. She saw only the best in others and sought only to bring out the best in them. To be in her presence was to know that one was recognized and respected. Seemingly without any effort whatsoever, she exuded grace and kindness, patience and care. Her favorite color was yellow. She loved the rain. She sang while she cooked. Her home was filled with books and art, music and light, and she surrounded herself with growing things. Wherever she lived, there too thrived flowers and vegetables, trees, plants, and children. Always there were children growing and laughing around her; they adored her instinctively and trusted her immediately. They were drawn to her gentle hands, the melodies in her voice, the way she attended to teatime and biscuits, the arrangement of a dinner table, the contours of a puzzle, or the wrapping paper on a birthday gift. The small rituals that make sacred the private, tiny moments of childhood. Margaret sanctified the most mundane of daily tasks and drew forth from the simplest things the complexity and glory of existence. Her laughter was joyfully infectious; her smile was an invitation to happiness. Her beauty was unsurpassed and undiminished to the very end. We mourn her passing, we cherish her memory, we remain grateful to God for sharing her with us. Margaret is survived by her husband Jim Don; her children Hilary Don (Mark Dewire), Andrew Don (Anne Nickodem), Sophie Donpineo, Timothy Don, and Jennifer Don; her twelve grandchildren Jane, Luke, Peter, and William Dewire, Andrew, Megan, Christian, and Alex Don, Sage and Nathan Donpineo, and Lucy and Julius Don; her three great-grandchildren Margot Alexandra Don (Andrew Don and Olivia Lynch), Samuel Don, and Addison Margaret Dewire (Jane and Kelly Dewire); and her dear cousins Jennifer McCarthy, Gregory McCarthy, Alexandra Corder, and Damien Vaught. In lieu of flowers, Margaret’s family asks that gifts be made in her name to either Room in the Inn or the Red Cloud Indian School, of which Margaret was a lifelong supporter. A Mass of the Resurrection to which all are invited will be held for Margaret at St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Baltimore at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 27, 2024. The family looks forward to celebrating Margaret’s life with you in person at that time. When the storms break for her May the trees shake for her Their blossoms down. And in the night that she is troubled May a friend wake for her So that her time be doubled. And at the end of all loving and love May the man above Give her a crown.

Mrs. Margaret Mary Don (nee Gray)

February 20, 1935 - December 6, 2023