Margaret M. Delaney

On October 8, 2023, Margaret Mary O’Hara Delaney passed away peacefully at the age of 91 in Herndon VA. She was born in 1931 in Cambridge MA. Both her parents were teachers and Margaret followed in their footsteps, as did two of her own daughters. She grew up in Belmont, just outside Boston MA and went on to Leslie College. She was introduced to her future husband, Bob, by her brother Frank. Margaret and Bob were married in 1954 and soon moved to Maryland where Bob was employed as an acoustical engineer. They soon started and family and eventually moved to the San Fernando Valley outside of Los Angeles which was a center of government military contracts.

Bob began to specialize in anti-submarine warfare and was away from home for up to a month at a time testing equipment near The Bahamas. It must have been exhausting and lonely for Margaret but she was always present for her six children and remained cheerful.

In 1972, their life was upended again when they moved back to the Washington DC area. Margaret and Bob settled in Vienna where they sent their children to high school and then on to college. Once she finally got some free time, Margaret became a teacher’s assistant at Vienna Elementary. She loved working with small children.

When Bob retired in 1995, they settled in Duxbury, MA south of Boston. Their retirement home was a 5 bedroom “cottage” with room for children and grandchildren to visit. They also kept a condo in Oakton, VA to be close to family over the winter. Margaret spent many happy summers in Duxbury. She enjoyed the beach, gardening and visiting with friends and family.

Margaret loved to travel. Together she and Bob, visited England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Italy, Greece, Switzerland, Bermuda, The Bahamas, Jamaica, Mexico, most of the western US and Hawaii. When she wasn’t traveling, Margaret began to sew hundreds of teddy bears to donate to sick children.

Shortly after Bob passed away in 2007, Margaret stayed closer to home, eventually settling in Oakton full time. She kept a busy schedule with reading and needlepoint. When her eyesight began to fail, and she could no longer drive, we encouraged her to move to assisted living. She enjoyed life at Brightview for several years, but during the pandemic she began to miss a step or two and it was necessary for her to move to a memory care residence. Margaret lived at Great Falls Assisted Living for four years and was a favorite of the staff. She knew what she wanted and was not shy to let them know. Margaret remained a strong presence until the end.

Margaret Delaney is survived by five of her seven children: Ann Delaney Ktenas (Ioannis), John Robert Delaney (Susan), son-in-law Robert Turner; Susan Delaney Rutherford (Tim), Tracy Delaney Cox, and David Patrick Delaney (Beverly); six grandchildren, (Bianca Ktenas Karem, Patrick Delaney, Caitlin Turner, John Turner, Ryan Rutherford, Andrew Rutherford, Clayton Delaney Cox and Kristin McKenzie Cox; and three great-grandchildren, Colby, Landon and Banks. She was pre-deceased by an infant daughter, Alice; her daughter Nancy Delaney Turner and her beloved husband Robert Delaney as well as her brother and two sisters.

A funeral Mass will be held for Margaret Delaney at St. Mark’s Church in Vienna VA on Friday October 27th at 11 am. Margaret request to be cremated and interred with Bob at Mayflower Cemetery in Duxbury MA.