Mary Looker Obituary

April 4, 1925 - February 27, 2025 Mary Macbeth Looker was born April 4, 1925, in Detroit, Michigan and raised by the proud parents of Herbert James Macbeth and Flora Ulley Macbeth in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. She Attended the Liggett School, Grosse Pointe Country Day School, and Grosse Pointe High School where she met the love of her life, Robert Looker in 1939. Later Mary attended Ogontz Women's College, now Penn State University. Mary spent her childhood swimming with friends and family at their cottage on Lake Saint Clair and, as an accomplished equestrian, she loved spending time with her animals and horses. She was also prolific in piano, harp, flute, sang soprano in the choir, volunteered for war efforts in the gas mask production line, and worked as a candy striper. Mary was an inciteful, eloquent, graceful, and generous woman, philanthropist, and visionary with a quick Scottish wit. She lived according to the phrase "actions speak louder than words."
Prior to graduation, Mary accepted the hand of marriage to Robert Looker, who was then a midshipman at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. They wed on June 12, 1945 in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, when she embarked her new life as a bride to a naval officer. Soon thereafter, they traveled throughout the country to various naval bases and became parents to their daughter Nancy Blair, son David, son John, son Peter, daughter Amy, and son Rob. After Robert's naval career, they found their home in Santa Monica, California and later Santa Barbara, California. Mary and Robert were together for 72 years and full partners in marriage for 68 years until Robert was "relieved of duty" in June of 2012.
In California, Robert embarked on his career in manufacturing while Mary pursued her interest in environmental protection, establishing the Citizen's Planning Association. Mary later was on the planning commission for many years in Santa Barbara and was asked by the Governor to be the leader of the Central California Coastal Commission. She was the only female member and led with great success in protecting the development of the Central Coast and its natural habitat. Having deferred her college studies to become Robert's shipmate in his naval career, co-parents of a growing family, and partners in the early work in setting up Satco, Mary enrolled in UCSB, majoring in Art History and Religious Studies. She received her diploma in 1984 with honors and proceeded to help UCSB's fundraising by establishing its first gift shop of the art museum, which raised money for the curation of the museum.
Mary and Robert created the Looker Foundation in 1995. With her leadership, the Looker family members were able to allocate funds to help address the needs of children, families, education, and the environment, as well as arts and culture. As a lifelong supporter of humanitarian causes, Mary helped over fifty nonprofit organizations over many decades. As in all of her undertakings, Mayr had the vision and the action-oriented ability to help those most in need.
In 2014, her call to duty was to help the United States Naval Academy raise awareness and support for the study of cyber security. Within a five-year period, Mary and her daughter Amy were instrumental in raising as much as $90 million for the program and watched it become accredited as a collegiate major from its conception that she helped to support. Mary and Robert were members and plank owners of the President's Circle. Mary was also a board member of the United States Naval Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. In her widowed years, Mary contributed to the development of the NSA's Cryptologic Museum and Foundation. Aside from bringing attention to her love of the Naval Academy and the brigade of midshipmen, she had a love for art; world traveling; food had a culinary gift; music, including jazz, soul, classical, and Motown; literature; and entertaining, including Mary and Bob's hosting of bridge parties with friends. Robert ('46) and Mary Looker's impact on the world's understanding of the role of digital infrastructure in the success of individuals, businesses, and societies has been massively improved by the investment, development, and creation of cyber strategies for both technology and work forced development born of the Naval Academy's groundbreaking work in cyber strategy – work made possible by their vision and generous support.
Mary's love of music and the arts had a broad reach. She supported the Hammer Museum, MOCA, MOMA, LACMA, and the Tate Museum. She was a member of Friends of the Tate, the American Academy of Rome, and was on the Collection Committee of the National Gallery of Art and LACMA. Mary and Robert donated various pieces of artwork to museums with the hopes of perpetuating education in the arts and culture. Mary and Robert were founders of the Disney Concert Hall and was a longtime member of the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion.
As a devout Catholic since the early 1960's, Mary attended St. Paul the Apostle Church in Westwood, where her private funeral mass will be held. Mary passed away peacefully of natural causes in her home in Manhattan Beach, California, looking over the Pacific Ocean on Thursday February 27, 2025. She is survived by her six children, nine grandchildren, and five great grandchildren.