Jean Alberts MacGregor died March 10 surrounded by family at her home in Malibu, where she lived with her husband, Mac, for 57 years. She was 90 years old.
Born in Los Angeles on Aug. 18, 1921, MacGregor grew up amid the lima bean fields of Culver City, where she attended La Ballona Grammar School and Hamilton High School (class of 1939). When World War II interrupted her studies at UCLA, MacGregor became a stewardess for United Airlines. She married Emerson “Mac” MacGregor in 1945 and together they built a life and home for their daughters in a rural Malibu. MacGregor encouraged her children to be independent, love the great outdoors and appreciate the uniqueness of their surroundings. The MacGregors enjoyed taking summer family vacations at “Big Flat” on the Smith River.
MacGregor returned to UCLA in the mid-1960s to finally earn the Bachelor of Arts that she had sought right out of high school. In those days it was unusual for a woman in her 40s to be seen on campus. She enjoyed her pioneering role and made many lifelong friends from the experience. MacGregor went on to have a long career as a teacher’s aide at Malibu Park Junior High School.
“Jean had a way of gathering friends of all walks of life and of all ages,” MacGregor’s family wrote to The Malibu Times. “Those who knew her enjoyed that she was sharp, witty and had a great sense of humor.”
MacGregor loved the ocean, the chaparral of Malibu’s canyons and California’s natural beauty and history. Inspired by that history, she suggested the name “Juan Cabrillo” for the new elementary school that opened in Malibu in 1955 where her children attended.
MacGregor is survived by Mac, her husband of 67 years; her daughters and their husbands, Mary and Hildebrando “Ian” Villarreal, and Gaynor and Jeff Christiaansen; her grandchildren Belen Villarreal, Carlos Villarreal and Michaela Christiaansen; as well as her brothers Bill and Neal Alberts, many nieces and nephews, and her dear friends.
Memorial services will be private.