Mary Margaret Hunt Leaman

Mary Margaret Leaman passed away peacefully on October 9, 2018, at the age of 87.

She was preceded in death by her parents Ambrose John and Ruth Hydt Batliner, and grandmother Gertrude Woolsey Hydt. At her passing, she was a member of St. Luke Simpson United Methodist Church.

Born September 17, 1931, in Kansas City, MO, she moved to Louisiana in 1945 when her father’s career with Missouri Pacific Railroad brought the family to Lake Charles. She performed as a Lake Charles High School Majorette and graduated with her class in 1948.

Because college was beyond her reach, her Uncle Jim paid for Mary Margaret’s college education under one condition: she was to help other women achieve a college education. Undaunted by his challenge, she graduated with a degree in elementary education from Southwestern Louisiana Institute/SLI/ULL in 1952, and throughout her lifetime, she quietly fulfilled her promise.

Ever curious and willing to learn, she was an elementary school teacher, a bookkeeper, a Notary Public, a realtor, an H & R Block employee, and a successful investor in the stock market. A woman well beyond her time, she was a co-founder of the Southwest Louisiana PC User Group in 1984.

As a long-time member of the Swinging Rebels Square Dance Club, Mary Margaret was able to pursue her passion – dancing. Round dancing, her favorite could be a challenge to her partner, but she made it look graceful and effortless. She continued to dance well into her senior years.

Mary Margaret waited patiently for her Prince Charming who appeared in her life when she was in her seventies. And her prince loved to dance as much as she did. After her marriage to Don Leaman on October 19, 2008, they spent many happy years dancing, traveling, and enjoying life, moving eventually to Pharr, Texas to have access to more dancing.

She is survived by her husband, Donald E. Leaman; children, Martha Whelan (Jamie) of Lake Charles; Ellen Hunt of Piedmont, SC; Darrell Hunt (Stephanie Laborde) of Baton Rouge; and Alvin Hunt of Lake Charles; grandchildren, Kate Pierce of Portland, OR; Ben Pierce (Stefania Federico) of Wimbledon, London, UK; Amy Gaines (Andrew) of Piedmont, SC; and Aaron Jackson of Piedmont, SC; great granddaughter Mary Rose Pierce, of Wimbledon, London, UK; nephew Naaman Eicher of Clearwater, Florida; and nieces Meredith Eicher and Ashley Eicher Duplessis of Baton Rouge.

The family would like to thank the staff of The Guardian and the angels at Harbor Hospice for their love and compassion.

A memorial service will be held at Johnson Funeral Home at 3 pm, Sunday, October 14, 2018. Dr. John Robert Black of St. Luke Simpson Methodist Church will officiate. Visitation is from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. She will be interred at Old Ritchie Cemetery in Moss Bluff at a later date.

Memorials may be made to the Elayn Hunt Memorial Scholarship Fund, McNeese Foundation, Box 91989, Lake Charles, LA 70609.