In Memoriam: Mary Anne O’Neal

“First Grandmother of Carson” Honored by Community

Mary Anne O’Neal, one of the City of Carson’s leading voices passed away in July, aged 92.

O’Neal was among the community members who helped found the City of Carson in the late 1960s. For her efforts then and her decades of service to the community since, she has been recognized as the “First Grandmother of Carson.”

O’Neal was an educator in the Los Angeles Unified School District for more than 30 years, including time spent on the LAUSD Board of Directors.

From 1994-1999 she served as a councilmember for the City of Carson where she helped establish the Joseph B. Jr. and Mary Anne O’Neal Stroke Center, recently recognized with an “Award of Excellence” by the California Parks and Recreation Society.

She graduated from Eliza Miller High School in Helena, Ark. as Valedictorian of her class. She would ultimately earn a master’s degree from California Lutheran University.

A memorial celebration was held for O’Neal last month at Resurrection Church, which followed a motorcade that traveled through Carson to CSU Dominguez Hills and Carson City Hall.

Mary Anne O’Neal was a longtime member of the Normandie Church of Christ and is survived by two sons, Brian and Kevin, as well as five grandchildren.