San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Elsie Mae O’leary
March 3, 1925 - December 15, 2020
SAN DIEGO —
Elsie Mae O’leary, daughter of Nora and Bartlett Shannon, passed away peacefully in her sleep at home on Dec. 15, 2020, at the age of 95. She was born in Fort Worth, Texas, and came to San Diego, California, with her husband and three children in 1960.
She is survived by her husband of 71 years, William J. O’leary; children: Sheila Robertson, Laurie Thompson, Doug O’leary; six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. After her first child was born she decided to be a stay-at-home mom. In later years she expressed how happy she was to have made that decision.
Elsie was an outstanding athlete. Playing semiprofessional softball, she was a star pitcher and recruited by the All-american Girls Professional Baseball League (the organization portrayed in the film “A League of Their Own”). Being only 18, she did not want to leave home and turned them down. In her later years, she became a terrific bowler and helped coach her son, Doug’s Little League team.
She so looked forward to the yearly fishing/ camping trips to the eastern Sierra’s near the town of Bridgeport, CA, that she and her husband made after his retirement. She was awarded several trophies for many of the large trout she caught and brought into the boat. She was the talk of the RV park.
Over the years she was involved in various church societies at St. Catherine Laboure Catholic Church and, as a result, had maintained a close relationship with many of the women in the parish.
Elsie loved people and she never met a stranger. Her family and friends were not the only beneficiaries of her great and generous heart. Anyone who ever stood in a grocery line, sat in a waiting room, or was at the hairdressers with her, became her friend.
She was a wonderfully loving, caring wife, mother, grandmother,
great-grandmother, and friend to all. She enriched many lives and will be sorely missed.
Because of the current situation, Elsie’s memorial and internment have been postponed. Notification of these will be forthcoming.
Please sign the Guest Book online obituaries.sandiegouniontribune.com