May McLean Macionis

May McLean Johnston Macionis May McLean Johnston Macionis passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 9, 2013, at the Hospice House in Charlottesville Virginia at the age of ninety-five. In recent years, she resided at the Colonnades in Charlottesville. May was born on December 30, 1917, in Easton, Pennsylvania, to John McLean Johnston and May Lawson Johnston, both of whom came to the United States from Scotland. For most of her life, May resided in Elkins Park, outside of the city of Philadelphia. Based on her unusually high aptitude, the local school system selected her to participate in an experimental class sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. She graduated from Cheltenham High School at the age of sixteen, with a full scholarship for college. The following fall, she enrolled at Drexel University, graduating in 1938. In 1942, she married John Joseph Macionis, a Yale graduate and Olympic swimmer. They were married for seventy years before his death in 2012. May spent most of her life as a homemaker, raising two sons. She was active in the Daughters of the British Empire, including service as the organization's national president. She also tutored new arrivals to the United States in the English language. She was a skillful bridge player, mastering the game that she enjoyed throughout her life. She was a genteel lady, always kind, courteous, caring, who always did what was right. Intelligent and articulate, she was a joy to know and talk with. May is survived by her sons, John of Mount Vernon, Ohio, and Robert of Charlottesville, Virginia, their wives Amy and Patricia; four grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. There will be no funeral. Donations in May's memory may be sent to the Hospice of the Piedmont www.hopva.org.

This obituary was originally published in the Daily Progress.