Margaret Chambers French

Margaret Chambers French lived ninety-three years, nine months and 15 days and filled her family with love every day of her life. We all miss her and know that she will be in our hearts forever. She was born in Corona, Calif., in March 1920 on a rainy day, at the home of her parents. Her father had to drive several miles in the middle of the night to bring the doctor to the house to attend the birth. She was the tomboy and her sister, Emily, who was four years older, was the girl-girl. Margaret grew up in Fresno, Calif., near a train yard, where she played after hours and welcomed the hobos who came through town. Margaret's mom always made time to sew for her daughters and have teapot tea after school. She was her dad's helper and willingly handed him wrenches when he worked on the family car. She went to school, kindergarten through college, in Fresno and earned a B.A. in Fine Arts with a Special Secondary in Art, as well as a Life Teaching Credential. Margaret met Karl Edward French at Fresno State College and later married in 1942. They lived in Wilmington, Calif., during World War II, while Karl served in the U.S. Coast Guard as a photographer for Port Security. She worked nearby in the military shipyard as a secretary. Soon after the War and their first child was born, they moved back to Fresno, where their family grew to include two brothers for their sister. Karl took over his father's business as a painting contractor. They bought 10 acres on the outskirts of Fresno and built a real log house using carefully chosen logs from the Sierra Nevada foothills. In 1952, Margaret and family packed up and moved to the Central Coast of California to the rural village of Cambria. As soon as her youngest was in first grade she was hired as a kindergarten teacher at the local grammar school where she taught for 27 years. In addition to her morning classroom assignment, she taught art and remedial reading to children in the upper grades. She also found time to teach a college level art history course for the local J.C. Along with her teaching duties, she was president of the local chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma and volunteered as a Cub Scout den mother and Girl Scout troop leader. For her personal enjoyment, she took life drawing classes and found time to paint in watercolor and oil. In retirement, she and Karl enjoyed designing and building an ocean view home in Cambria. They later added a bed and breakfast, which they operated for three years. Because their daughter and son-in-law had migrated to Oregon, they decided to follow and became residents of Eugene in 1994. With her elder son and his wife also moving to Eugene and later her younger son, her granddaughter as well as her grandson, his wife and infant son, she was surrounded by family, the true focus of her life. Eventually, she would boast of six great-grandchildren, her biggest joy. Margaret is survived by her daughter, Robin French Munger and husband Charles Munger; son, Preston Lee French and his wife Barbara Garrison French; son, Barton Edward French and his wife, Glenda Jones French. Her grandchildren are Brandon G. French, Adrienne French Standridge and Briana French Jones. Her husband of 53 years; and grandson, Brenton Edward French, predeceased her. Margaret lived with kindness at the center of her life. She marveled at the natural world and all of its wonders, the basis of her own informal religion. She gave great credit to Mother Nature for the incredible beauty of the earth. Her favorite season was Spring and when the daffodils are in full bloom, her family will gather and celebrate her life with a picnic at Mt. Pisgah Arboretum, near Eugene and a family home-movie night. Margaret came into and left this world on a rainy day. She never once complained about Oregon's life-giving, "liquid sunshine."