Continuing our series of stories looking back at the top events of 2017, two remarkable women died this year. Susan Luckie Reilly, a long-time resident of Twentynine Palms, died June 22, on her 101st birthday. Reilly was the daughter of Dr. James B. Luckie, a Pasadena physician who recommended the dry desert climate of Twentynine Palms to WWI veterans suffering from the effects of mustard gas. Reilly was a driving force for preservation and protection of the Southern California desert.
And Mara Cantelo, founder and the driving force behind the annual Tender Loving Christmas, TLC, events, died at home in September. In 1983, Cantelo, who lived alone, decided that no one should be alone for Christmas and started the TLC free Christmas buffet dinner. In the subsequent 34 years, literally tens of thousands of people had a meal, gifts, toys, entertainment, canned goods, and a place to be with friends on Christmas. Cantelo described it as, “One neighbor taking care of another neighbor.”
