Margaret Mae Okorie

Family and neighbors in Little Rock mark the death of Margaret Mae Okorie on August 22, 2026. She was 86. Born on October 16, 1939 and raised among Nigerian-American manners that never needed a speech. She learned early that a day is something you finish, not something you wait for. She coaxed buses through mornings that would not wait for excuses. A depot locker key on a brass ring opened more than a locker; it opened payday. Colleagues still mention a depot locker key on a brass ring. She and John married in 1966 and raised two sons and a daughter without needing an audience. After John's death in 2019, she held to quiet habits—coffee before dawn, a tended yard, a voice on the phone that still checked in. Neighbors remember a rake leaned against a shared fence after a storm. She preferred the hour before a town fully wakes. Little Rock was home enough that she never rehearsed an introduction. The recipe card is still stained in the useful places.