Anne (Mahlum) Mccrary Obituary (1930 - 2014)

Anne (Mahlum) McCrary September 20, 1930 - March 19, 2014 Anne (Grandma Cookie) passed away at home in the loving arms of her husband, of 63 years, from Alzheimers. She was born September 20, 1930 in Brainerd, Minnesota to James and Frances Mahlum. She married 2nd Lt. Norman McCrary in Minneapolis on March 10, 1951and set off for a quarter of a century as a Marine Corps Wife which she adored with the many moves to different bases and the chance to meet new people and great old friends again. Anne attended Rowland Hall in Salt Lake City and graduated from Ogden High in 1949. She attended the Univ. of Minnesota and the Dept. of Defense Language School where she became fluent in Farsi which was a great aide to her husband when he served as a Military AttachAC. to Iran, Iraq and the Trucial States. She belonged to the Cosmopolitan Club, American Contract Bridge League, Playa MazatlAn DBC and Turtles Intl. She enjoyed bridge and was an ACBL "Life Master", also knitting and was an instructor at the "Jittery Nittery", and giving "special dress up parties" for her grandchildren, however her second love was Travel. She read Richard Halliburton's "Royal Road to Romance" as a kid and the travel bug bit her. During her life she traveled to over 110 countries in addition to taking over 35 cruises, with her husband after he retired from the Marines, to teach and conduct bridge games aboard ships and at the Hotel Playa MazatlAn in the winters. She had so many adventures on every Continent it would take pages to list them i.e. she was in Santiago Chile and Athens Greece the day they had a coup. She rode on an Ostrich in South Africa, an elephant in downtown Karachi and a camel to the great pyramids. She loved diet Dr. Pepper and took a 2 liter bottle in her carry-on from Ogden and then on the "Road to Mandalay" where she had the Hotel Mandalay put it on ice so it would be available after day tours. Her last tour was to Hanoi. To her, "life was glorious." Anne is survived by her husband, Colonel Norman McCrary USMC (Ret.); her son, James (Elizabeth) McCrary; 4 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her daughter, Carolyn Anne Cleslak; her parents and step-mother, Lalla Mahlum. Norman would like to thank Hospice for Utah and Vickie Hopkins of Wasatch Home Helpers for their caring and support. A private viewing for very close friends was held on Monday, March 24th and the Celebration of Anne's life for her family will be held at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date where she will be interned next to her daughter. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to Alzheimer's Foundation of America, 322 - 8th Ave., New York, NY 10001. Arrangements entrusted to Myers Ogden Mortuary. CemeteryArlington National Cemetery Arlington, VA January 1, 2014