Margaret "Maggie" Ruth Crumrine Letcher was born on September 19, 1931 in Anacortes, Washington to Fred Crumrine and Margaret Carter. She passed away peacefully on May 13th, 2016 in Mission Viejo, California after months of illness.
Maggie graduated from Everett Washington High School in 1949 and continued on to earn an Associate's Degree in 1951 at Everett Washington Junior College. She decided to not stop there, she travelled south to Southern California and attended Cal State University of Los Angeles. Maggie graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism in 1973 and followed in 1974 with her Master's Degree in Library Science from University of Southern California (USC).
After graduation her career began as a librarian in the High Schools of the Los Angeles Unified School District. It was during these years Maggie served 16 years on the Board of Directors for the Professional Women of Los Angeles Philharmonic, Board Chairman of the Wilshire United Methodist Church, and 12 years for the Board of the Los Angeles School Librarians.
Amidst these activities Maggie travelled to Mexico, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Italy, France, China, Russia, and Ireland along with 6 trips to England to study their teaching methods and satisfy her interest Agatha Christie. Maggie retired in 2001 and moved to Laguna Woods, California. The word retirement did not mean "slow down", Maggie stayed active as the President of the World on Film Club, served on the Board of Opera 100 and a volunteer at Saddleback Hospital. And if that was not enough, she was a member of Ebell, The Historical Society, Friends of Laguna Woods Library, the Computer Club and enjoyed attending lectures and Bible classes.
In 2003 Maggie was united in marriage to Thomas Letcher and together their dedication to Laguna Woods earned them recognition as "Honorees of the Month" by the Historical Society for their efforts to preserve the past. Tom described Maggie as the "eternal optimist", allowing her to enjoy a vibrant lifestyle along with her journey of an ever deepening faith.
Maggie is survived by her sister, Lois Livingston, and nephew, Robert of Washington, two step-daughters, Kathryn Michaels of Oregon and Wendy (Chris) Vandehey, and a step-nephew Richard of Ohio.
Funeral Service will be held on Wednesday, June 1, 2016 at 11:00 am at Laguna Country United Methodist Church in Laguna Woods.
Share A Memory
Please join us in remembering Margaret. Through this site, we invite you to share your thoughts and fond memories with our family.