Margaret Elizabeth Streeter, 92, retired school custodian

When Margaret Elizabeth Streeter walked the halls at Dr. Ethel Allen Elementary, she was always met by smiling, waving students who wanted hugs.

"One day I said: 'Why are kids always running up to you, giving you hugs? You're my mom,' " said daughter Marilyn Streeter, an Ethel Allen student at the time. "She said,'I'm their mom too and some of these kids don't get this at home.'

"She loved people," her daughter added. "She was very sociable. She showed that, whenever she came into your company."

Mrs. Streeter, 92, of Strawberry Mansion, a retired school custodian and neighborhood block captain, whom her daughters described as loving, caring, and warm, died Sunday, June 18, at home.

A lifelong North Philadelphia resident, Mrs. Streeter was the youngest of three children born to John and Lula Snell.  She attended Philadelphia public schools and graduated from Murrell Dobbins Vocational High School. Afterward, she worked at several places, including Nazareth Home for the Aged, the YMCA, Campbell Soup Co. in Camden, and also made uniforms for the U.S. Army.

Mrs. Streeter was later introduced to John Streeter, her brother's friend, said daughter Kathryn Lewis. The couple married three years later in 1947 and had six children. The family moved nearby to the 2600 block of 30th Street in Strawberry Mansion, where Mrs. Streeter raised her family and quickly won the hearts of neighbors. She became the block captain in the early 1960s.

For 30 years, Mrs. Streeter organized community members, planning trips and events for children in the neighborhood and working to beautify the block.

"Some kids probably would not have received any type of vacation without the trips that my mother organized," Streeter said.

"She believed that it was everyone's responsibility to make the community better for children," added Lewis. "She could get people to mobilize to address things that they thought were not good for the neighborhood."

Mrs. Streeter prioritized her family, her daughters said, but she had a true passion for children.

In 1963, Mrs. Streeter joined the environmental services department at Ethel Allen, where she developed relationships with the school's teachers and students until she retired in 1986. After retirement, she continued to interact with her community. She also sold Avon and became a member of the company's President's Club, a status level awarded to the company's best sellers.

In addition to her two daughters, Mrs. Streeter is survived by another daughter, Ellen Small; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her husband of 53 years; a daughter, Jeanette Shell; and her sons, Wilbur and John.

A viewing will be held Monday, June 26, from 9 to 11 a.m. at Miller Memorial Baptist Church, 1518 N. 22nd St., followed by a funeral.  Burial will take place at Mount Peace Cemetery.

Update: An earlier version of this story listed the incorrect age for Mrs. Streeter. She was 92. Also, Mrs. Streeter never served in the U.S. Army. She worked for a company that made uniforms for the Army.