Mary O'Neil Obituary

Longtime Durangoan Mary Kay O'Neil died Saturday, May 10, 2014, in the presence of her family from complications from cancer. She was 63.

"Mary Kay O'Neil was a wonderful wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, friend and educator," her family said. "Anyone who knew her saw what a generous, kind-hearted, fun-loving soul she was. Her sense of humor will be missed by all who were lucky enough to have met her."

She was born Dec. 9, 1950, in Oak Park, Illinois, to Alice and Leonard Skoglund. Among six siblings, she was the only girl, which is what helped her develop that sense of humor, her family said.

Mrs. O'Neil met the love of her life, Paul O'Neil, while attending St. Mary's College, and he was at Notre Dame. Both schools are in South Bend, Indiana. They married in 1974 in Illinois; this August would have marked their 40th anniversary.

In 1982, the O'Neils moved to Durango. She worked in the Durango School District 9-R for more than 25 years. Mrs. O'Neil (or "Liberry" as kindergartners often called her) was the librarian at Park Elementary School for most of that time. Her family said she touched the lives of hundreds of students who will, no doubt, remember her story-telling abilities in addition to her kind demeanor.

"Mary Kay was the most amazing, caring, loving mother to her two lucky children, Katie and Paul," her family said. "She was a second mother to her son-in-law Todd and daughter-in-law Kristin. It would be difficult to find anyone more suited to the role of doting grandmother than Mary Kay. She adored her two grandchildren, Travis and Evelyn."

Her family said that to all her countless friends and family, she will be remembered as the woman who always had a joke to tell, an ear to listen, a helping hand to hold and a kind word to say. She loved hiking, Zumba and crossword puzzles, but most of all just being with her family and friends.

"Mary Kay always put others' needs before her own," her family said. "Her kindness and compassion for others was evident until the end. While at her sickest, she would still worry about the comfort of her visitors. She donated her body to cancer research so that even in death, she is still putting her concern for others first."

She is survived by her husband of nearly 40 years, Paul C. O'Neil, of Durango; son Paul F. O'Neil of Durango; daughter Kate Franke, of Manhattan Beach, California; brothers Steve Skoglund of Grand Junction, Tom Skoglund, of Norwalk, Ohio, Bill Skoglund, of East Troy, Wisconsin, Marty Skoglund, of Naperville, Illinois, and Dan Skoglund, of Chicago; two grandchildren; and many sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family is suggesting a donation in Mary Kay O'Neil's name to the Ocular Melanoma Foundation (www.ocularmelanoma.org/marykay).

A memorial service will be held at noon Saturday, May 17, 2014, in the DoubleTree Hotel ballroom.