Marilyn Kieweg Harper

Marilyn Kieweg Harper, mother, grandmother, teacher and long-time Palos Verdes Peninsula resident passed away peacefully surrounded by her three children, Ted, Christine and Doug, on December 13, 2023.

She was born in San Francisco, CA in 1938 to Howard and Louise Kieweg. At the end of WWII, the family settled in the Miracle Mile area of Los Angeles. Marilyn graduated from Los Angeles High School, studied at Scripps College in Claremont, and eventually earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California. Marilyn married James A. Harper, M.D. in 1960 and taught elementary school for several years, supporting her husband during his medical school years at Baylor University in Houston, TX and his internship at John’s Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. Upon the couple’s return to Southern California, Marilyn taught at The Westlake School for Girls until she became a mother herself to Ted, Christine and Doug in the latter half of the 1960s. The family moved to Rolling Hills, California in 1974, when James relocated his cardiac surgery practice to Long Beach Memorial Hospital. Marilyn raised their children and was active in many Palos Verdes organizations for years, serving in leadership positions on local PTA boards and in National Charity League’s mother-daughter Ticktocker group.

After getting divorced, Marilyn went back to school and earned a master’s degree from Pepperdine University. She devoted more than a dozen years to teaching History and English at Rolling Hills Preparatory School. A beloved and influential teacher to many, she later created a scholarship in her name as a means of giving back to the educational community that had given her so much joy.

Marilyn is survived by her three children, their spouses, and six grandchildren (whom she especially adored), and many loving friends and extended family members. Family and friends are invited to leave condolences and share memories at https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/kingwood-tx/marilyn-harper-11581160. A celebration of life is being planned for her in early 2024. Details will be posted on the memorial site as soon as available.