Margaret Sheftall Chester

Chester, Margaret Sheftall Of Milwaukee and Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, passed away on June 6, 2010, a week after her 89th birthday, in the lake home of her daughter, Cia McKoy, surrounded by flowers, family and music. Margaret was the wife of Milwaukee attorney and businessman, George M. Chester, Sr. Their marriage spanned seven decades, two wars, four children and thirteen grandchildren . Born on May 29, 1921, in Augusta, Georgia, the daughter of Caroline Mercier and Mordecai Giffin Sheftall, whose family members were amongst the first settlers in the state of Georgia, she was the third of six children. Margaret graduated from Agnes Scott College in Atlanta where she eventually established a scholarship in her name. She served in the American Red Cross during WWII, and later married Capt. George M. Chester, on May 23, 1946, in Geneva, Switzerland. After the war, the couple lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts and then moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Margaret was an active member of the Green Tree Garden Club, Milwaukee Woman's Club, Milwaukee Town Club and the Oconomowoc Lake Club. Margaret worked on the board of Family Services of Wisconsin for years and never missed a board meeting of Lakeside Children's Center. She served on the Milwaukee Symphony board and was one of four who started the Friends of the Florentine Opera. A longtime trustee of the Milwaukee Art Museum, she helped choose Santiago Calatrava as the architect for the new wing. Margaret surprised people with her business flair when she opened Marwood Antiques (1968-1977), a successful English antique shop, located in the downtown family department store, T.A. Chapman Company. She had a great eye, both in selecting art, antiques, and in decor. In her golden years, she spent her winters in Scottsdale, Arizona, building a modern home which she designed, summering on Oconomowoc Lake. An avid tennis player, world traveler and antique collector, she loved sunsets, babies, chocolate and reading down by the dock. Her children and grandchildren fondly remember her singing that old southern lullaby, Summertime. She is survived by her four children, George Miller Chester, Jr., of Washington, D.C., Laura Chapman Chester, of Great Barrington, MA, Cia McKoy, of Oconomowoc Lake and David William Chester, of Sherborn, MA; her brother, George Sheftall, of Augusta, Georgia; and her devoted house manager, Wanda White. A Memorial Service is being planned to celebrate her life on Saturday, June 26, Nashotah House, 11:00 AM.