Margaret Elizabeth Graves Pryor ~ 1916-2021

A life well lived… Margaret Graves Pryor… a centenarian.

Margaret Elizabeth Graves, the second of five children of Roy and Grace Graves, was born during a snowstorm on January 13, 1916 in Corvallis, Oregon where her father Roy was teaching at what would later become Oregon State University. Older brother Robert, who was born in Kansas, was 2 and a half when Margaret was born. When Margaret was a toddler the family moved to Maryland for Roy's job with the Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. The family lived in homes in Chevy Chase, Bethesda, and finally Kensington, Maryland. The three younger siblings Eleanor, Mary, and Ralph were all born in Maryland or nearby Washington, D.C.

Margaret rode two street cars from Bethesda to her elementary school in Chevy Chase. She had to change midway and usually was accompanied by an older girl. One of Margaret's early memories was when she was in first grade and the older girl didn't show up to accompany her on the trip home. She had missed the street car waiting for the girl and remembers walking all the way home alone—nearly 5 miles, a daunting task for any first grader. She was further traumatized by a runaway horse racing down the middle of the street toward her. Upon finally arriving home, she was met by her distraught mother and they both burst into tears.

The family spent parts of many summers at Crystal Lake in Benzonia, Michigan where some of Grace's cousins lived and ran a dry goods store. Margaret remembers the summer she was supposed to learn to swim. At the very beginning of the summer, she cut her foot on broken glass at the bottom of the lake and was forced to stay out of the water the rest of the summer. She remembers watching with dismay as her younger sister Eleanor learned to swim-- before her! But Margaret watched the swimming lessons carefully and the next summer she swam!

In second grade Margaret met Patty Morris. Patty's family were Quakers and Margaret remembers them using “thee” and “thou” when talking to each other. Robert was a friend of Patty's brother Teddy so Margaret and Robert would sometimes spend weekends with the Morris family. Margaret and Patty remained lifelong friends even though they were only in the same school for one year.

Margaret remembers attending many presidential inaugurations with her father. Sometimes he would rent a room on Pennsylvania Avenue so the family could watch the inaugural parade pass by their viewing stand. So began Margaret's lifelong interest in politics and a determination to be an informed and involved citizen.

Margaret became the envy of many of her friends when “Ralphie” came along—when Margaret was 10—and she had a real baby, not a doll, to push around! Even when she was 100+ and Ralph was 90+, Margaret continued to refer to Ralph as “her little brother.”

After attending Central High School in Washington, D.C., Margaret attended George Washington University where she majored in Education with a focus on Social Studies and a minor in physical education. She commuted to college on the street car from home, getting much of her studying done on the street car. In college, Margaret played basketball, was a member of Sigma Kappa sorority, and sang in the chorus.

Upon graduation, Margaret renewed the involvement she had had at Central High School with the YWCA Girl Reserves, but now as an employee of the Washington, D.C. YWCA. Many of her lifelong friendships were formed in those days among the Y staff. She remembers that the Y was the first to integrate its cafeteria and membership. The Girl Reserves assisted with the Easter Egg Roll at the White House the Monday after Easter and had the run of the basement in the White House. Margaret has special memories of meeting First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt during those days working at the Y since the First Lady was a supporter of the Y's work. Margaret has often remarked that Eleanor Roosevelt was very interested in other people and was a very warm person.

While working as a counselor and lifeguard (she did learn to swim well at Crystal Lake!) at a summer camp in western Virginia, Margaret (now called “Peg” by people other than her family) met Bill Pryor who had come to visit a friend working at a camp across the lake. Seven years later they married on Halloween 1942, the first Saturday Bill could fly east from Spokane where he was stationed as an FBI agent. In December 1943 along came “Donnie”--Donald Edward Pryor. Bill was soon transferred to Philadelphia and then a few years later to Arlington/Alexandria. In Alexandria, 2-and-a-half-year old Donnie received the gift of a little brother “Bobby”--Robert Hamilton Pryor-- in March 1946. Four years later, in May 1950, the family was completed when a girl finally arrived on the scene: “Kathy”--Kathryn Lee Pryor. The family soon moved to Winchester, Virginia where Bill was to be the solo FBI agent for the region and where the family lived for 10 years. While there, the Pryors enjoyed their 'relative' proximity to the Maryland families of Mary and John Kitterman, Ralph and Kate Graves, and, when they were in the States, Eleanor and Dick Kitterman. The families spent many happy times visiting back and forth.

In 1960, Bill was again transferred, this time to Detroit, Michigan, much to his distress, and the family (absent Don who stayed in Winchester to finish his senior year in high school) lived near Detroit for 3 years. While there, Margaret occasionally worked part-time grading high school English writing assignments, and, after the final move to Richmond, Virginia in 1963, Margaret occasionally was a substitute teacher in the middle school.

Margaret/Peg was always very involved in her church, serving as an elder, moderating circle, chairing committees. She was active in the League of Women Voters and American Association of University Women (AAUW). For many years she tutored elementary school students through a program at her church. She delivered Meals on Wheels into her 80s, often older than many of the people she was serving.

She was never one to shy away from challenges and making hard decisions. Possibly the greatest challenge she faced was her eventual divorce from Bill after more than 40 years of marriage. Only her strong faith and support of family and friends brought her through this difficult and soul-searching time, coming out on the "other side" stronger than ever. She lived by herself for a number of years in the family home in Richmond until making the decision, on her own, to sell the home and move to Westminster-Canterbury (W-C), a continuing care facility in Richmond. To facilitate this move, she “summoned” her children to spend a fun weekend reminiscing and "claiming" anything they wanted and clearing out all their own “treasures” that had been stored in the house. After the successful move to W-C and sale of the house, Margaret continued her busy church life and involvement with friends and family and occasional visits with her siblings in Maryland. Later Margaret decided on her own that she didn't need the stress of driving anymore so voluntarily gave up her driver's license and sold her car and never looked "back." After 20+ years at W-C in independent living, a fall that resulted in a broken hip, forced her at age 102 to move into the assisted living section of W-C where she continues to reside today.

Margaret has always loved her children, grandchildren, and her daughters-in-law, Karen and Lucy. She was and is an avid supporter of the children’s activities: from music, to academics, to sports (she even humored her sons by doing her ironing while watching and keeping play by play accounts of World Series day games while Don and Bob were in school!). She encouraged them to pursue life-expanding opportunities. Her children knew they were loved and cared for in every way. She created a welcoming home where her children's friends of all "makes and models" were graciously welcomed. When 5 grandchildren and (now) 4 great grandchildren came along, she was and is always interested in their lives and not afraid to ask the questions their parents were reluctant to ask..."Do you have a girl/boy friend? Are you getting married? What kind of job are you wanting?"

Margaret never aspired to be a great homemaker and cook; nevertheless, she excelled at both, always keeping the house welcoming and presentable and feeding her family delicious meals, especially some amazing desserts (in addition to the ever-present ice cream!). But she was very aware of the importance of well-balanced meals and, though neither she nor Bill were big fans of veggies, she regularly cooked spinach for the kids (who loved it) and tried to set a good example by eating her "no thank you" serving! She delegated routine jobs to the rest of the family so they did dishes, helped clean the house, took care of the trash and did most, if not all, of the yard work (even though she loved her flowers and very much enjoyed working in the yard).

Margaret has always loved to write. She often wrote clever poems for special occasions and, in her “older” years, she wrote down some of her memories in stories for a memoirs class. At age 104, Margaret continues to love words. Doing the crossword puzzle and the Jumble are an important part of her day, along with trying to keep up with the news, challenging as that is for most of us! She loves hearing from family members, especially during these Covid-19 days when in-person visiting isn't allowed and all the visiting has to be by phone or mail...and even some FaceTime sessions with various family members.

Throughout her 104+ years, Margaret Elizabeth Graves Pryor has exhibited a life of faith and service. The quote attributed to St. Francis-- “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.”--could surely also be applied to Margaret.

Written June 2020 by Margaret’s three children, Don, Kathy, Bob