Margaret McElroy Powell was born January 2, 1948, in Chicago, Illinois, and passed away August 28, 2016, in Hudson, NY, after a yearlong courageous struggle with colon cancer. She attended Marian Catholic High School and Illinois State University. She met her husband Greg on a student ship on her way to spending her junior year in Grenoble, France. After losing touch with each other, they met once again during a chance encounter in St. Peter’s Square in Rome on Christmas Eve, 1967. They spent the following 50 years together, never losing their love for language, travel, and adventure. She received a Master’s degree in Language and Linguistics from Georgetown University and a Ph.D. in French Literature from Duke University. Margaret approached life with style, grace and creativity. Friends and family relied on her for her knowledge, insight and delicious cooking. When visiting Key West, she enjoyed the weather, the culture, the cuisine and the many friends of her sister and brother-in-law Kathy and Steve Russ.