Margaret Cough Wear, Retired Elyria Athletic Director, was Once an Avon School Bus Driver

Margaret Cough Wear, who died Feb. 10, started her career in public schools as a bus driver for the in 1965.

She retired as the Elyria schools athletic director in 1997.

Along the way, she graduated from Lorain County Community and Oberlin colleges, earned a master’s degree from the University of Akron and led an Elyria High School girls basketball team to the state semifinals.

Wear, then known as Margaret Cough, began driving bus for the Avon school district in 1965. She was hired as transportation supervisor for the Elyria schools in 1974.

In 1975, she began teaching physical education at Elyria High School and coaching volleyball, basketball and track.

She guided her basketball team to the Class AAA state semifinals in 1979. The first Lorain County girls team to go to OHSAA Final Four, the team and its coach were enshrined in the Elyria Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

Wear was individually inducted into the Elyria Sports Hall in 2002 and  honored by the Lorain County Girls Basketball Coaches Association.

She also was named Buckeye Conference girls coach of the year in 1979 and Lorain County Athletic Director of the Year in 1994.

Wear became coordinator of health and physical education and the girls athletic director in Elyria in 1981. In 1994, she took over as athletic director for all sports – boys and girls - in the district.

The Avon resident, whose maiden name was Reny, was born in North Vassalboro, ME. She graduated from Winslow (ME) High School and attended Thomas Business College in Waterville, ME.

She lived in Avon since 1955.

In addition to her interest in sports, Wear painted artwork that she gave to family and friends and was an accomplished seamstress. She played piano and guitar. She also liked to watch birds.

Her husband, Alan D. Wear, had served as athletic director and was a longtime golf coach for the Avon schools.

Besides her husband, survivors include daughters, Nancy Shelton and Kathleen Schatschneider; sons, Bryce, David, John and Edward Cough; three grandchildren; and two great-granddaughters.

Calling hours are from 5-8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 21, at , 36363 Detroit Rd., where services will take place at 1 p.m.Feb. 22.

Memorial donations may be made to the Vermilion Arts Guild, 685 Main St., Vermilion, OH 44089; or the Avon School Educational Endowment Fund, 35573 Detroit Road, Avon, OH 44011.