Obituary
Marcia Tookey
Marcia Hickman Tookey, a 44-year resident of La Cañada, passed away on May 22, 2008, at the age of 75. She was born on Jan. 3, 1933 in Van Wert, Ohio.
In her senior year of high school she won the Ohio State Debate Contest and a four-year scholarship to Wittenberg University. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English and debate and began a teaching career at Fort Wayne High School in Indiana. It was there at a party that she met her husband, Robert Tookey, from La Cañada.
Three children later, her husband relocated to Los Angeles and the family moved to La Cañada where Bob’s parents lived.
In the years that Marcia resided here she was always involved. She became PTA president for La Cañada Elementary School, president of the Town and Country Fine Arts Club and recipient of its Woman of the Year award, president of the La Cañada Republican Women’s Club Federated, and member of the Foothills Republican Club and the La Cañada Thursday Club.
Marcia was a tireless organizer of precincts and, after many years of volunteering, she was hired as the assistant to the California State Party’s executive director, Dr. Tirso Del Junco. One of her jobs was making speeches throughout the state and teaching volunteers how to get out the vote.
She worked the state conventions for Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, and in 2004 was a contact person for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s campaign.
When she retired, she was appointed to the national board of Republican Women Federated.
Besides her enthusiasm for her work, she enjoyed coming in contact with a variety of interesting people. A highlight was when she and her husband had dinner at the White House. In 2006, she was honored to be one of five people asked to greet President Bush and his wife, Laura, on the tarmac at Burbank Airport, when they came to an event in Southern California.
Marcia is survived by son John of Lancaster, daughter Jennifer of Phoenix, son Thomas of Pasadena and 4-year-old granddaughter Lilian.
Services will be held at noon Tuesday, June 17 in Church of the Recessional at Forest Lawn, Glendale. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be directed to Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund ( www.fallenheroesfund.org), One Intrepid Square, West 46th Street and 12th Avenue, New York, NY 10036; Fisher House Foundation ( www.fisherhouse.org), 1401 Rockville Pike, Suite 600, Rockville, MD 20852; or Armed Services YMCA ( www.asymca.org) 6359 Walker Lane, Suite 200, Alexandria, VA 22310.