February 5, 1921 – February 29, 2020
Margaret Frances May, well known for her career in nursing, her volunteer work for the Catholic Church, and her active contributions to various city and state civic organizations, died February 29, 2020, of natural causes at the William E. Christoffersen Salt Lake Veterans Home. A lifelong resident of Salt Lake City, Margaret was 99 years old, the last survivor of seven children of John and Agnes Hearley, whose family was connected to the Irish Catholic clan of Hearley/ Welsh/ Ivers/ Maher / Gallivan that was so prominent in the Salt Lake City culture of the 20th Century.
Appointed to the Women’s State Legislative Council in the mid-1980’s, Margaret served for years on the Committee for Health and Human Services. In 1989 Bishop William Weigand conferred the Papal medal, Pro Ecclesia Et Pontifice, to Margaret for her contributions to the Diocesan Council of Catholic Women and for her tireless volunteer work for the Vincent de Paul Soup Kitchen. In 1994 the Salt Lake City Council of Women named Margaret as a Utah Woman of the Year in recognition of her distinguished career in nursing as well as her post-retirement dedication to volunteer work on behalf of church and state.
Upon her graduation from the Holy Cross Hospital School of Nursing in 1943, Margaret accepted a commission as a United States Naval officer and was assigned to the Naval hospital at Mare Island near San Francisco where, as a designated burn center, the medical staff treated severe burn victims of Pacific naval battles. In 1945 she married William Rex May, also a Naval officer, with whom she had three children before their divorce in 1949. Margaret then returned to Salt Lake City, where she began her dual career as a lifelong single parent and as a hospital nurse, working the emergency rooms of Holy Cross, St Marks, and LDS Hospitals. In the early 1960’s, Margaret entered industrial nursing, a new medical field at the time, helping to establish the first medical center at Sperry Univac Corporation, then a few years later, the medical center for the main branch of the Salt Lake City Postal Service, from which she retired in 1983 as a licensed nurse practitioner, having continued her nursing education and degrees late into her career.
Margaret touched the lives of many in her long life, but none more than her own children and grandchildren, for whom she was every day in every way our own woman of the year. She is survived by her son-in-law and daughter, Sam and Colleen Quigley of Salt Lake City; her son and daughter-in-law, Tom and Linda May of Price, Utah; her son Timothy of Grass Valley, California; her grandsons, Jason and Justin Quigley, and Matthew and Sean May; and her nine great grandchildren.
Throughout her long life, Margaret May was appreciated for her natural gift as a storyteller, her cheerful optimism, and her keen sense of humor. Her unshakable religious faith and her unflappable nature contributed to a laughter-filled approach to life. Margaret spent the last five years of her life as a beloved resident of the William E. Christoffersen Salt Lake Veterans Home. The executive director of the Home, Noralyn Snow, spoke for many others in saying: “Everyone knew and loved Margaret. She made us all smile, just simply smile. She was a wonderful woman.”
A funeral mass will be celebrated Saturday, March 14, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, 670 South 1100 East, Salt Lake City, with committal to follow at Mt. Calvary Catholic Cemetery, 4th Avenue and T Street. Funeral Directors, Neil O’Donnell and Sons.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations in Margaret’s name to the Saint Vincent de Paul Soup Kitchen, c/o Catholic Community Services, 224 North 2200 West, SLC, UT 84116.