Margaret Mary "Peggy" Luce

We gather here today to celebrate the homegoing of a truly blessed soul, Margaret "Peggy" Mary (Reilly) Luce, a beacon of love and faith whose earthly journey commenced on January 19, 1935, in the city of angels, Los Angeles, California. And on the 11th day of February (the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes), in the Jubilee year of our Lord 2025, while saying the rosary as she prepared for a doctor visit, the Almighty called our dear Peggy home from Menifee, California, where she was surrounded by the warmth of her loving family.
She was born to Lawrence Reilly and Mary "May" (Dooley) on January 19, 1935, in her family home in the El Sereno Neighborhood of Los Angeles and was baptized the next day at All Saints Church on Portola Avenue. She graduated from San Gabriel Mission High School. She died peacefully in the same room and mere feet away from where her dear husband of 53 years, George Bailey Luce, also died peacefully in 2009.
Peggy was a woman of unwavering faith, a devout Catholic who found solace and strength in the arms of the Lord, attending mass devoutly at St. Martha's and Holy Martyrs Catholic Churches in Murrieta, California. Her love for the Lord was as boundless as the sea and as constant as the northern star.
Margaret "Peggy" and George sent all five of their children through 12 years of catholic school, including most notably St. Rose of Lima School in Chula Vista and Marian Catholic High School in Imperial Beach. They were also very involved in building both St. Denis Catholic Church in Diamond Bar as well as St. Martha Catholic Church in Murrieta. Being a young Navy wife with five young children-all within about five years of age - she also did some significant and daunting double-duty (plus!) on the home front on those occasions where husband George was away on "official" duty.
The essence of Peggy's life was her beloved family. The Lord blessed her with a fruitful marriage to her loving husband, George Bailey Luce, who preceded her in glory in the year 2009. Together, they planted a garden of love that blossomed with their children, George (married to Carrie Louise Hunter), Paul, Tom, Anne (married to George Toole), and Carol (married to Sam Frias). Peggy's legacy continued to flourish with the birth of her nine grandchildren (Kyle, Vos, Michael, Kaylee, Daniel, Thomas, Luke, Heather, and Jon) and eight great-grandchildren, (Milo, Madeline, Genesis, Owen, Jade, Sunny, Jason and Asher) each a precious gem in the crown of her life.
Her younger sister, Mary "Phil" (Reilly) Gledhill, also survives her while her older brother Dr. James Patrick Reilly and younger sister Shirley (Reilly) Ballard preceded her in death.
Peggy was a homemaker par excellence, having dedicated over 65 years to creating a sanctuary of peace and love for her family. All thirteen years she had children in St. Rose of Lima School she was a room mother most famous for her pleasant presence and incredible cupcakes. Also, especially through those grammar school years (but definitely not limited to those years), she consistently and meticulously crafted many thousands of homemade lunches, usually lining up six crisply creased and lovingly filled lunch bags on the countertop each school day and workday morning. Also, crucially, but perhaps easily overlooked, was one of her most important and productive and successful accomplishments – that of being an incredibly good and supportive and loving wife to her husband George, which greatly helped him to be the fantastic father and husband he was. Her hands, though now at rest, were once never idle as she crafted a home filled with laughter, learning, and the Lord's grace.
Her children and grandchildren will attest to her unwavering support, her unyielding strength, and her inexhaustible wisdom. Peggy was always present, a guiding light in the lives of her kin, providing spiritual guidance and a love that knew no bounds.
Let us remember Peggy as a loving matriarch, whose heart was ever open and whose hands were always extended in a gesture of giving. She was faith-filled, a vessel of the Holy Spirit, radiating hope and charity to all who crossed her path. Thoughtful in her deeds, she cultivated a garden of kindness that will continue to bloom in the hearts of those she touched.
As we bid farewell to Peggy, let us not dwell in the valley of sorrow, but rather, let us rejoice in the knowledge that she has fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith.
Though her earthly vessel lies silent, her spirit soars on wings of glory, and her legacy endures in each life she has tenderly shaped. We shall not say goodbye, but rather, 'until we meet again,' for Peggy's love remains with us, a gentle whisper in the wind, a soft touch in the warmth of the sun, and a comforting presence in the quiet moments of prayer.
Let us lift our hearts in gratitude for the time we were blessed to share with Peggy, and let us carry forward the light she has kindled within us. May her soul, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.