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Honoring the Enduring Legacy of Margaret Jenkins
A tribute to the remarkable, centennial life of a longtime Ochsner patient whose generosity continues to advance medical research and patient care
By Olivia Watson | Photo courtesy of the Jenkins family
The sky was the limit for Margaret Lorenzen Jenkins—a larger-than-life personality and among the first female air traffic controllers in the U.S. during World War II. Stationed in the control towers of Fort Worth, Texas, Margaret immediately made her mark in a room full of men.
“I remember asking her what it was like,” her niece Sally Jenkins shared. “Margaret laughed wryly and said ‘I was outnumbered.’” But that didn’t stop her from later becoming the highest ranking woman in her section of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and earning a government service evaluation of 14 (the highest ranking being 18). When other women were furloughed and issued out of government service after the war, Margaret was called back to her role and continued rising up the ranks.
Her life later brought her to New Orleans, where she was stationed at an early metropolitan airport. She lived in the French Quarter for many years and discovered Ochsner Health, the place she would entrust with her care for the rest of her life, even after she moved away.
A lifetime of loyalty to Ochsner
“Margaret was a patient of Ochsner for decades,” Craig Bardell, Director of Planned Gifts, shared. “She was coming to us almost as early as our records go back.”
Margaret fell in love with William “Mack” Jenkins, a civil engineer for the FAA who was also stationed in Fort Worth. When they married, Ochsner quickly became a community for the both of them. It wasn’t just a doctor’s appointment—it was a fun trip to New Orleans, the place they loved, and an opportunity to see people they had built meaningful relationships with every year for their annual check-ups. Together, they decided to give back to the hospital throughout their lives.
“They established a charitable remainder trust to support medical research at Ochsner, and that trust paid them a steady stream of income for almost 25 years,” Craig explained. Ochsner received a gift from the trust, close to $60,000, as well as a bequest in Margaret’s will.
When Mack died in 2003, Margaret continued giving to the organization. “It’s uncommon that a patients leave a significant remainder of their estates to Ochsner,” Craig said. “But Ochsner meant a lot to both Margaret and Mack—it was like a second home,” Craig said.
An inspiring legacy
Despite living independently well into her mid-90s, Margaret’s health began to decline when she was diagnosed with dementia. “She was fiercely independent and wanted to manage everything on her own, but still trusted Ochsner to deliver the best care,” Sally said.
“I had the pleasure of seeing Margaret on her final visit to Ochsner, before she moved into a nursing home,” Craig shared. “She had a little trouble walking, so we gave her a bright red scooter to ride around campus that day—you should have seen the way her face lit up with joy.” Her passion for life was palpable.
For Craig and the rest of the Ochsner community, patients like Margaret are the heart of the hospital. “She was a wonderful friend to this organization, putting her trust in Ochsner’s caregivers for decades,” he said. “We could not be more grateful to Margaret and Mack for supporting a new generation of patients, advancing medical research and furthering Ochsner’s mission to deliver top-tier care.”
In the final years of Margaret’s life, Sally became her primary caretaker. Sally fondly remembers discussions with her aunt about her life and service to her country. “She had these moments of clarity,” she shared. “Even at 100 years old, with dementia, it seemed like her brain was still so powerful.”
Margaret Jenkins as an air traffic controller after World War II during her career with the Federal Aviation Administration.
Photo courtesy of the Jenkins family
Among these stories, one stands out as a testament to Margaret’s courageous spirit and intelligence. When she was working as an air traffic controller in Fort Worth, Margaret and her male colleagues competed to guess how long it would take a plane to travel between point A and B. Amid engineers and scientists, Margaret won with the most accurate guess.
After a lifetime of service to her country and the people she loved, Margaret’s final wish was to continue living her best life—and to look good while doing it. “When I told Margaret she was about to turn 100 years old, she couldn’t believe it,” Sally said. “And then she replied: ‘Well I’ll have to get a new wardrobe then.’”
— Craig Bardell, Director of Planned Gifts
