Margaret Coughlin, 83, A Stalwart Of Magnolia

To those who knew her, Margaret Coughlin was a symbol of community pride.

They called her the Magnolia activist, a woman who represented her neighborhood at Seattle City Council meetings and a mother who kept an eye on the Seattle School Board.

At 24, she ran for the state Legislature and won. She served one term.

At 82, she still attended PTA meetings at Lawton Elementary, the school her children attended years ago.

"She believed that community planning was the key to progress in society," said her daughter, Alice Byers of Seattle. "She also believed that the school should be the focus of the community."

Mrs. Coughlin died Saturday, Feb. 3, in Tacoma. She was 83.

Mrs. Coughlin graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in philosophy. During an unsuccessful 1971 campaign for a City Council seat, her main concern was "rebuilding national strength" by "giving Seattle a form of city government in which democratic methods can function and flourish - neighborhood and community councils meeting with one another."

Besides her role in politics, Mrs. Coughlin was a devoted mother who built canvas tepees and encouraged neighborhood shows, Byers said. On a warm spring evening in May 1945, she celebrated the end of the war by baking a lemon roll and telling her children to eat dessert first, her daughter recalled.

Her community activism inevitably brought her enemies, Byers said, but she "always had her fans."

Among them were staff and PTA members at Lawton Elementary. In 1990, they recognized her civic involvement by naming the school playground after her.

She was a tiny, gray-haired woman with presence, PTA members said.

During the last 20 years of her life, she rode the bus because "it was very egalitarian," Byers said.

"She was a tenacious, feisty woman who didn't let anything get in her way," said PTA member Deborah Valentine-Barker.

In addition to politics, Magnolia history was one of her passions.

She is also survived by her son, Denis Coughlin, of the Republic of Palau.

Memorial donations may be sent to the Secret Garden Fund at Lawton Elementary, 4000 27th Ave. W., Seattle, WA 98190.