Mary Margaret Smith was a DODDS teacher, married to Richard McGowan six months after meeting, on March 10, 1965, in Athens, Greece. They had two children: Richard Jerome McGowan, a high school teacher in McKinney, Texas, and Anne Marie Johnson, a lawyer in Dallas, Texas. They and their spouses, Marianna Hubbard and Nathan Johnson, "produced six talented grandchildren who were the greatest delight in my life" – Thomas McGowan, Mary-Margaret Rose McGowan, James McGowan, Finn Johnson, Theodore Johnson, and Sophie Johnson. In addition to his wife, children and grandchildren, Richard is survived by a wonderful brother, Thomas Slater McGowan and his wife, Betty Ruth, who reside in Strasburg, Pennsylvania.

Through DODDS and their work with the NEA, Richard and Mary Margaret enjoyed 35 years as part of a close-knit community of overseas educators. To this day, their DODDS friends are more like family.

In 2015, Richard and Mary Margaret moved to McKinney, Texas, where they lived in the historic district next door to their son Richard and his family.

The McGowan and Johnson families have created a memorial scholarship in Mary’s honor which will be used to help fund a college education for a Texas public high school student. Contributions to the McGowan Family Scholarship would be deeply meaningful to the family and can be made in two ways: (1) checks made out to "McKinney Education Foundation," memo line: "McGowan Family Scholarship," can be mailed to McKinney Education Foundation, 510 Heard Street, McKinney, Texas 75069, or (2) online contributions can be made by clicking on the "Donate Now" link on the menu bar at www.mckinneyef.org. Please indicate that contributions are made in "memoriam/honor" of McGowan Family.