The Garden Island
Notice #: 0001422413-01
Funeral Notices


MARGERY JEAN (BAILEY) MULKERN

July 17, 1921 – December 20, 2022

On December 20, 2022, Margery Jean (Bailey) Mulkern, passed away. Margery was born in Alameda, California and came to Honolulu at the age of 12 with her mother, Dorothy Bailey. They lived on Royal Hawaiian Avenue in Waikiki, in a white stucco house with a red tile roof and panax hedge. Margery attended Roosevelt HS and UH Manoa and talked about walking through the coconut groves on the way to school. During WWII she joined the Women’s Air Raid Defense (WARD) and worked at Fort Shafter assisting with the plotting of troop movements. She is mentioned in the book Shuffleboard Pilots. Her photos show a beautiful, blonde (bombshell) smiling while looking over her shoulder at the camera. Like her husband, she was very modest about sharing her accomplishments. She met her husband James Abberton Mulkern, Jr. when he was stationed in Hawaii. They married December 7, 1946. As a married couple they were stationed on Kwajalein where the drinking water was "rust" colored, and they lived in a Quonset hut. Margery was a full-time teacher at Jefferson Elementary School in Waikiki and a substitute teacher at Aina Haina Elementary where her sons attended. She and James built their house in Aina Haina in 1948, and she lived there until she died.Margery was an avid tennis player and member of the Waialae Country Club; you could often find her assisting at the tennis shop. She and James attended Holy Trinity Church. She is survived by her two sons, Kevin and Brian, Kevin’s wife Susan, and their granddaughter, Dorothy Mulkern Bright. Their best family vacations were at beach houses in Hauula and Malekahana where the family walked the beaches looking for glass balls. She had a big heart and never had a bad word to say about anyone. She was always there to defend the weak and helpless. A funeral mass will be held on Monday, July 17, 2023, at 10 AM at Holy Trinity Church, 5919 Kalanaianole Hwy., Honolulu, HI, and burial will be at 2 PM on the same day at Diamond Head Cemetery 529 18th Avenue, Honolulu, HI. This date would have been Margery’s 102nd birthday. Margery’s celebration of life will be held on Sunday, July 16, 2023 from 5:30 PM – 8:30 PM at the Outrigger Canoe Club, 2909 Kalakaua Avenue, Honolulu, HI. If you are one of Margery’s many friends or friend’s relatives, we would like to hear from you and include you in our guest list, phone 808-396-6595.

Arrangements Provided By:
Oahu Mortuary