Margaret Mattis Knoerr

1924 - 2020

Margaret Mattis Knoerr

Chapel Hill

Margaret Mattis Knoerr, longtime Chapel Hill resident and former Reference Librarian at Duke East Campus Library, passed away peacefully at Carolina Meadows retirement community on February 10th.

Born in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania on December 13, 1924, Margaret (Maggie) is survived by her husband Charlie Browning, her son Fred Mattis (Nancy) of Annapolis, Md., daughter Susan Mattis (Joseph Shay) of Waltham, MA, son Ben Mattis (Wendy) of Townsend, MA, and grandson Benny Mattis of Mt. Vernon, KY and Townsend, MA. She was preceded in passing by her eldest son, West Mattis, and by her first husband, UNC Professor Norman W. Mattis, and her second husband, retired businessman George Knoerr.

Maggie's spirited nature was always evident, as in leaving her hometown and enlisting in the Canadian Women's Army Corp when she was a year too young to enter America's ranks. Her primary duties (1943-45) were with the Recruiting Office (Ontario), where she also worked on War Bond Drives.

In her upbringing of her children, she emphasized two things—reading aloud, and hiking. One legendary excursion took the family from Chapel Hill along railroad tracks to Blackwood Mountain and back.

Academically, Maggie was adept since high school. As a mother, after devoting many years mostly to her family, course-by-course she attained her English degree and then Masters in Information and Library Science. She was pleased that her Master's research paper, UNESCO and Bibliographic Control, was published in the Southeastern Library Journal. Her "one-world" commitment never faltered.

In 1971 she began 20-year employment as the Reference librarian at the Duke University East campus. Her work allowed her to continue to pursue her life-long love of learning; most notably she developed a deep appreciation of Western art through her responsibility for the art library collect. Approachable, warm and attuned to the needs of those around her, she made friends both with patrons and with student assistants that lasted for her lifetime.

As fearless as ever, after retirement Maggie climbed the Grand Canyon and made solo trips to Italy, France and Spain, carrying only a small knapsack. She followed the motto of her childhood hero, Amelia Earhart: "Adventure is worthwhile in itself."

In the '80's she completed an impressive 60-page genealogy of her maternal ancestors, tracing back to John Knight, who arrived in America from England in 1635. Distributed to family members, it is a prized possession of all—giving a truly human look at lives of dozens of individuals tracing down over 300-plus years.

Maggie's marriage to Charlie Browning in 2000 brought delightful companionship and further adventure into her later life. Together they shared their spiritual quests and enjoyed travels to Europe, Mexico, Guatemala, Israel and China, making friends wherever they went.

Maggie lived a benevolent, rich, and full life. Memories of Maggie will forever be cherished by all who knew her.

Funeral service will be held at the Episcopal Chapel of the Cross, 304 E Franklin St., Chapel Hill at 10:30 on Friday Feb. 21, with interment and reception immediately afterward.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Chapel of the Cross, or a charity of choice.

Condolences may be shared at CremationSocietyNC.com.