Margaret “Peggy” Mennel Bailey, 97, formerly of Toledo, OH and Marshall, Michigan, passed away on Sunday, August 17, 2014 at United Hospital Center in Bridgeport, WV. She was born September 25, 1916 in Toledo, OH a daughter of the late Mark N. and Margaret L. Mennel.
She was preceded in death by her husband, John H. Bailey, who passed away in 1987.
She is survived by two sons, David F. Bailey of Bridgeport and Peter H. Bailey and his wife Chris of Michigan; three grandchildren, Megan Harvey and her husband Ryan, Joseph Bailey and Haleigh Bailey; two great grandchildren, Reese Parker and Tanner Harvey; and several nieces and nephews and cousins,
She was preceded in death by three brothers, Mark N. Mennel, Jr., Walter M. Mennel and William C. Mennel; and one daughter, Kate Bailey.
She was the oldest member of her immediate family and last grandchild of Alphonse Mennel, founder of the Mennel Milling Company of Fostoria of which her father, Mark, was Chairman of the Board prior to his death and which remains owned and operated by the Mennel family. Margaret attended Smead School in Toledo then Mount Vernon College, George Washington University, Washington, DC. Margaret lived in Michigan for over 65 years after her marriage in 1946 on a pioneer farm of which the family is only the 3rd owner when not visiting children in Virginia and West Virginia. Proficient in written and spoken French she was an avid reader and passionate crossword puzzle solver in English and in French. Margaret appreciated all forms of music and art, played piano and was an avid horsewoman jumping competitively when she was younger. She volunteered for years at hospitals wherever she was and continued that until she died. She also loved golf and twice achieved a hole in one at the Greenbrier and the Homestead. She became very interested in the family genealogy later in life as it was found there were several direct relatives prominent in American history in the various branches of the families and kept up a correspondence with Mennel relatives in the Alsace-Lorraine area of France where the family originated.
There will be no visitation or funeral services for Mrs. Bailey and her interment will take place in the Marengo Township Pioneer Cemetery in Michigan.