Leona Marmurowski O'Brien's Obituary
Leona Marmurowski O’Brien of Dallas, Texas passed away on November 7, 2020 in the comfort of her home, surrounded by her loved ones. She was born June 1, 1934 in Brooklyn, New York to parents Leon and Cecilia. She is survived by her five children: Patty, Chris, Kathy, Doug & Lee, along with their spouses: Bryan, Cathy & Eric. She also leaves behind her nine grandchildren: Megan, Kristi, Mallory, Greg, Hope, Holly, Will, Erin & Hannah. In addition are her nieces and nephews: Richie, Kenny, Greg, Donna, Debbie, Eddie, Lulu, Martin, Michelle, Bina and Susan, plus their children. Also left to mourn her passing are her sister and best friend, Stasia, as well as her cousins and favorite confidants: Margie, Richard & Marie. She was preceded in death by both of her parents, her brother, Edmund & her husband, Tom.
From an early age, Leona had a fascination with learning, including her brief stint attending Polish school. Her entire countenance changed whenever she mentioned those days, with eyes gleaming and smiles abounding. Clearly, she enjoyed the exhilaration afforded her via both the spoken and written word. Upon starting at Manual Training High School, which was subsequently renamed John Jay High School in 1959, she knew that she could easily adapt to its “great atmosphere”. Our Mom loved going to high school, so much so, that the fun she experienced while there, admittedly, tended to interfere with her grades. It was at Manual Training High, in those welcoming surroundings, that Leona blossomed during her two year tenure as the General News Editor of the school newspaper. Her specialties involved writing the headlines and the gossip column.
Our Mom’s educational journey continued with various classes taken beyond high school. It might come as no surprise that stenography, a type of language all unto itself, both intrigued and excited her. Armed with her newfound skills, she ventured into the business world in the banking industry. Later on in her life, she branched out into the medical field, working in both front and back office capacities. Medicine, also a language of its own, fueled her intellectual curiosities perfectly. Additionally, daily interaction with patients quelled her need to be around other adults.
Shortly after entering the workforce, while on a double date to watch a water show at famed Jones Beach, Leona was introduced to a man who piqued her interest. He was not, however, her date that night. He was, instead, the other woman’s date. Another time while at Nippy’s with a girlfriend, Leona encountered this same gentleman. He offered to drive them both home, being sure to drop Leona off last. Subsequently, he invited her to his younger brother’s high school graduation party. After this party, she decided to stop spending time with him.
Fast forward seven years . . .while enjoying herself with friends dancing up a storm at the Lyceum in Brooklyn, Leona ran in to him once more. It was then that she professed aloud to him that she was “head over heels” in love. He asked her to go with him to buy cigarettes and then suggested that they go grab some Chinese food. Any of you who are familiar with our Mother’s penchant for Chinese food understands the import of his meal selection that night. As they say, the rest is history! Within a year, Tom & Leona were married.
Children arrived at lightning speed – five of us within eight years. That small fact alone, speaks directly to our Mom’s strength of character, coupled with her ability to role with the myriad of punches being a homemaker back in that epoch entailed. Naturally, with a family as large as ours, innumerable tales of shared experiences were generated – some funnier than others, but all offering a glimpse into the wonder that is our Mom, Leona.
Parents do strange things. Apparently, that is a given which accompanies one’s decision to bring a new life in to the world. It was obvious that our Mom was familiar with each of our names. After all, she was as instrumental as our Dad was in selecting them for us. Why was it, then, that when she found herself temporarily at her wit’s end with one or more of us, that she, out loud, ran down the list of all of our names before finally arriving at the name of the child in question?!! Lesson - Perseverance
Because our Mom had the luxury of growing up in a major metropolitan area, she had no real reason to learn how to drive. As the family expanded, relocation to the suburbs soon followed. What was formerly a reason, was now thrust in to the category of need. Getting her Drivers License came sometime in our Mom’s 30s. This meant that she wasn’t afforded the opportunity to have the vehicle double as a quiet place she could “escape to” as a change of scenery. Why? – because she would have up to five children in tow.
Back before wearing seatbelts was cool and/or required by law, we were driving in a parking garage, approaching the exit booth. A car pulled out in front of us. Mom had to slam on the brakes in order to avoid a collision, catapulting Doug in to the back of the driver’s seat, splitting his lip. Mom exited our car, walked up to the man’s vehicle and proceeded to give him an earful. Immediately afterwards, the man got out of his vehicle, came over to our car and apologized directly to young Doug. Lesson - Protection
In another car-related incident, we were driving around in an old Pontiac that our parents had purchased from our Uncle Charlie. The gas pedal came loose from its mountings and Chris was tasked with lying down on the floor underneath the dash to work the pedal so that there was no disruption in our ability to continue driving. In hindsight, decades later, this fun adventure seems so crazy, because all that needed to be done to fix the problem, was to simply pull off on the side of the road to reposition the gas pedal back in place. Lesson - Determination
With five students in school simultaneously, the dining room table at our house in New Rochelle often doubled as homework central. Plus, its proximity to our Mom’s typical location in the house during this time of day, when homework was being completed, was optimal. While writing papers for various school assignments, Patty often peppered our mother with questions as to how certain words were spelt. Inevitably, Mom’s go to response was, “Look it up”. To this day, it still makes little sense to have been told this – especially when Mom could have spared Patty endless frustration, as well as have saved Patty time and energy. It’s no wonder that Patty is a huge fan of the Internet, at least in its capacity to act as a dictionary requiring very few letters as input, before it automatically offers you the correct spelling. Lesson - Resourcefulness
In a large family, the dynamic to potentially be overlooked, unfortunately, exists. One year, our Dad failed to remember our Mom’s birthday. He felt terrible as a result. The following day, he returned home in possession of a lovely wrapped gift. He presented it to Mom, who accepted it graciously . . . as she walked to the backyard, where she promptly threw it, unopened, into the swimming pool. Our Dad never forgot her birthday again. Lesson - Respect Yourself
Attending Sunday Mass together as a family was something we did until we kids began leaving the nest. After Mass, we usually sat down together to enjoy a meal. On one memorable occasion, in an attempt to alert some of us to be aware of what we were doing, Mom blurted out, “No eating with food in your mouth”. Clearly, she meant to say, “No talking with food in your mouth”. You can imagine her dismay when the room erupted in raucous laughter. She, undoubtedly, must have felt that we were being disrespectful - - at least until she realized exactly what she had said. It was at this point that she, happily, joined in on our group display of joviality.
In the event that the above example did not sink deeply enough into our souls, our Mom, once again, came to the rescue, unexpectedly. In an innocent gesture that most children would relish, our Mom excitedly offered us each a lollypop. The only problem was that she grabbed the bag along the bottom seam. In doing so, the weight shifted, causing the contents of the entire bag to spill onto the floor. Instantaneously, all six of us were in stitches, so much so, that tears were rolling down some cheeks. No worries though, because our Mom remained faithful to her mission of gifting us with said lollypops! Lesson - Laughter IS the Best Medicine
One day while in the attic, Patty came upon a box full of our Mom’s record collection. Being curious by nature and an avid music fan herself, Patty asked Mom for her permission to leaf through the contents of the box. Our Mom happily allowed it, all the while lighting up, as if she was actively taking a much needed stroll down memory lane. There is no doubt that Roger Miller’s Golden Hits album, featuring the song King of the Road, became a family favorite. Perhaps our family’s move in 1979, from New York to Texas, was NOT the result of the relocation of a corporate headquarters, but, instead, the desire of a true country music fan’s heart made manifest?!
Our Mom’s clandestine musical genre preference had to be polka; a salute to her Polish heritage. Did you know there is a Saturday night Polka channel on cable tv? Our Mom did! One would have to be awake very late at night to catch her indulging in this, her sweet pastime. If you were fortunate enough to have her invite you to sit down and join her, you too would succumb to the magic of polka music. Thank you Mom for sharing your appreciation of music, the universal language, with us. Lesson - Be Yourself
Our parents had been married for 49 years when our Dad passed in 2008. As often happens when the body ages, illness can set in. Our Dad encountered more than one person’s fair share of physical ailments. Through it all, our Mom cared for our Dad as he weathered each and every aspect of the milieu. She should be sainted for this alone. Lesson - Devotion
Those of us who remained living in Dallas were accustomed to receiving the “I Love Yous” our Mom uttered face to face. Others, who moved away, accepted them virtually, via telephone or greeting card. Mom was always conscientious about being sure to send her love to her children’s spouses and to her grandchildren.
Whenever our Mom knew that her grandkids were coming to visit, she notoriously was certain to have an ample stock of each ones favorite foods on hand. If she forget even a single item, you would find her sincerely doling out apologies.
At holiday time, she was adamant about gifting the grandchildren with the same number of items each. Perhaps this compulsion of hers had its roots in her having lived through the post Great Depression era? Maybe it simply aligned with her generosity? Either way, her grandkids benefitted from wherever the origin stemmed . . . It is clear that both our Mom and our Dad enjoyed watching the exuberance come alive in their home at Christmastime.
During non-holiday times, it was not uncommon for there to be small do-it-yourself arts & crafts projects waiting for the grandchildren to delve into. When asked, “Why?”, Mom would nonchalantly respond, “Because I wanted to”. She was a grandma who loved her grandchildren and showed it not only via her words, but also, via her actions. Lesson - Love
Our Mom lived to the age of 86 despite having stage 4 COPD for many years. This milestone put her in a category that not too many people in her same situation reached. Given the longevity of many of the women on her side of the family, she probably could have lived to be 100 or older, had she not made the decision to smoke. Our Mom often voiced her remorse at this decision.
If you do not smoke, please adhere to that choice. If you do and are discontented by that, kindly value yourself enough to explore options that will aid you in quitting. You are worth it! Lesson - You Are Tougher Than You Think
Our Mom was a very devoted fan of the TV show Jeopardy (and Wheel of Fortune too). When its iconic host, Alex Trebek, heard that his super fan, Leona had passed on Saturday, November 7th, in an extreme gesture of solidarity, he joined her on Sunday, November 8th. Through their passing, they both, thankfully, received freedom from pain and suffering of all types. Lesson - Peace
Without a doubt, our Mom taught us immeasurable lessons. One simply had to tune in to a precise wavelength to comprehend the vast wealth of the messages she broadcast. In her unique way, they were delivered from a place of love. We thank you for this Mom!!!!!
Private services will be held November 17, 2020 at Restland Memorial Park, Dallas. A celebration of life event will take place at a future, yet undetermined date.
Memorial contributions may be made to CURESMA.org in memory of Leona and in honor of Hannah Ostermayer. They can also be reached via mail at: Cure SMA, 925 Busse Road, Elk Grove Village, IL, 60007, or, via phone at (800) 886 – 1762.
Our family thanks you for your expressions of love and kindness.
Our family would like to thank Jeanette for her devoted friendship and the selfless care she extended to our Mom. It will forever mean the world to us remembering the peace you brought to her. We love and appreciate everything about you.
What’s your fondest memory of Leona?
What’s a lesson you learned from Leona?
Share a story where Leona's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Leona you’ll never forget.
How did Leona make you smile?