Mary R. Georges

November 28, 1931 – June 17, 2018

Surrounded by her family, Mary R. Georges passed peacefully at her home on Sunday night, June 17, after a long journey with breast cancer. She is survived by her husband of 62 years, Bob, and son, Jon.

Mary was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and adopted by Laura and Ralph Ruth of Downs, Kansas, where she was raised. The family moved to Wichita Falls, Texas, where Mary graduated from high school in 1949.

She attended Midwestern University there and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English in 1953. Mary went on to Ohio State University in Columbus where she earned her master’s degree in English within one year.

Her education continued with creative writing courses at the New School for Social Research, literature classes at the University of Pennsylvania, and literature, language and linguistics courses at Indiana University in Bloomington.

Mary’s long teaching career began in 1954 at Bound Brook and Southern Regional high school in New Jersey where she taught English. Mary and Bob met at Bound Brook while teaching in adjacent classrooms. The two were married on Aug. 11, 1956.

In 1963, Bob accepted an assistant professor of English position at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. Jon, their first and only child, was born in June of the same year.

From 1964 to 1966, Mary was an instructor in the Intensive English Center at the University of Kansas. In 1966, Bob accepted a position at UCLA, and the family moved to Hartzell Street in Pacific Palisades. Four years later, they purchased their first house on Fiske Street, where they have lived since 1970.

Between 1967 and 1975, Mary was an instructor in the Department of English at Santa Monica College. In September 1975, she became a lecturer in the UCLA English Department, where she taught remedial English and writing to incoming freshmen.

Her students quickly became her biggest fans and flourished under her supportive teaching style. Mary’s teaching leadership did not end in the classroom; Her one-on-one personal advocacy with her students garnered her long-term loyalty and many remained in touch with their special mentor even after graduation.

Mary retired from Writing Programs and from UCLA in November 1992.

After her retirement, Mary and Bob traveled extensively. In Europe, they deepened their appreciation of the arts through Elder Hostel programs.

Domestically, they traveled across county visiting family, looking up friends and visiting former colleagues. Wherever they went, Mary made new life-long friends and cherished and nurtured each one.

At home, Mary continued her interests in the arts by taking courses at the Emeritus College in Santa Monica with her husband. They attended concerts at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and plays at the Pacific Resident Theater and the Fountain Theater.

Over the years, Mary and Bob enjoyed having dinner parties with colleagues, friends and family.

For many years, Mary was a group facilitator at Sojourn, a shelter for victims of domestic violence, which is part of the Ocean Park Community Center. There she helped women and their children in crisis by providing counseling services as a volunteer.

Throughout her life, Mary was an avid reader. She read voraciously, often two or more books per week. Her son kept an endless supply coming to her.

The family is grateful to the staff, doctors and nurses at UCLA Oncology for Mary’s long-term care. Her in-home caregivers and hospice nurses provided exceptional care and comfort to Mary and her family.

A private service for family and friends is being planned. Memorial donations may be made to:

• Sojourn at the Ocean Park Community Center (OPCC) at opcc.net/sojourn?nd=sojourn

• Santa Monica Emeritus College at santamonicacollegefoundation.org/emeritus.php

• Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation at http://donate.drsusanloveresearch.org