Margaret A. Cumbo

Margaret Ann Cumbo, affectionately known as “Margie,” age 79, of Country Club Hills, Illinois, passed away peacefully at home on August 30, 2026, surrounded by her loving family.

Margaret was born on March 1, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois, to Mildred McLaughlin. She was raised in Chicago by Mildred and John and attended Bogan High School. Over the years, Margaret built a career as an Executive Assistant, a role well suited to her intelligence, determination, strong personality, and ability to keep things and people moving in the right direction.

But the center of Margaret’s life was always her family.

For 56 years, she shared a loving and happy marriage with her husband, Joseph G. Cumbo. Together, they built a life and family that became Margaret’s greatest source of pride. She was a devoted and loving mother to Jennifer (John) Mickalovski, Angela (Jeremey) Cryan, and Joseph (Tamara) Cumbo, and an adored Nana to Jayson Mickalovski, Jacob Cryan, Abigail Cryan, Vincent Cumbo, and Gianna Cumbo. She was also a beloved sister to Rosemary Roloff and Nancy Bochenek.

To know Margaret was to know someone with a personality all her own. She was funny, witty, wonderfully sarcastic, feisty, opinionated, and fiercely protective of the people she loved. Those closest to her always knew exactly where they stood with her, and they would not have wanted her any other way.

She was also the undisputed queen of premonitions. Whenever important news was shared, Margaret could almost always be counted on to announce, with complete confidence, “I knew that!” It became one of those unmistakably Margie expressions that made her family laugh and will forever bring a smile when they hear it in their memories.

Beneath her sharp sense of humor was a woman of tremendous strength and determination. Those qualities were never more evident than during her nine-year fight with cancer. Margaret faced that long journey with remarkable courage and resilience, continuing to be herself through it all: strong-willed, loving, funny, and devoted to her family. Cancer was a difficult chapter in her life, but it never defined who she was.

Her laughter was unmistakable and will remain one of the sounds her family treasures most. Margaret had a way of bringing humor into a room, whether through a perfectly timed comment, a sarcastic observation, or simply the infectious laughter that made everyone around her smile and laugh along with her.

As a mother, Margaret was kind, loving, devoted, and protective. As a Nana, she was extraordinary. She loved her grandchildren deeply, took tremendous pride in each of them, and created memories that were uniquely theirs.

Jayson will miss their FaceTime conversations and the connection they shared across the screen. Jacob will remember the cookies and the familiar owl cookie jar that became part of his memories of Nana’s home. Abigail will remember how Margaret was always so beautifully dressed, carrying herself with a sense of class and style that was entirely her own. Vincent, lovingly known as “Vinny,” will forever hear Nana asking him, “Where’s my smile?” And Gianna will treasure the one-on-one conversations she shared with Nana, the quiet moments that belonged just to the two of them.

These may seem like small moments, but they are the ones that become priceless. They are the pieces of Margaret that her family will carry forward: her voice, her expressions, her style, her humor, her cookies, her laughter, and the individual way she made each person feel known and loved.

The family she and Joseph created over more than five decades was not simply part of Margaret’s life. It was the heart of it.

Margaret leaves behind far more than memories. She leaves behind the strength she demonstrated throughout her life, the love she gave so fully to her family, the wit and humor that could brighten a room, and a family forever shaped by having been loved by her.

Those who knew Margaret will remember her determination, her unmistakable personality, her devotion to those she loved, the courage with which she faced life’s hardest challenges, and perhaps most of all, her laughter.

She will be deeply missed, lovingly remembered, and forever loved.

Visitation Wednesday September 2, from 3pm until 7pm at the Tews-Ryan Funeral Home 18230 Dixie Highway in Homewood. Funeral prayers Thursday 10:45am at the Funeral Home to St. John Neumann Church (St. Joseph Church) Mass 11:30am. Interment Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood, IL. For additional information contact tews-ryanfh.com or call 708-798-5300.