Marie A. McCray, 82, human resources manager and workforce specialist in Philadelphia

Marie Antoinette McCray, 82, of Wynnewood, a human resources manager and workforce development specialist in Philadelphia, died Monday, April 1, of pneumonia at Lankenau Medical Center.

Born in Philadelphia, she was the only child of Conrad and Frances Espinosa. She was raised by her grandparents Joe and Marie Penir in the Carroll Park section of the city.

She graduated from West Catholic Girls High School and earned an associate degree in business and human resource management from Peirce College, Philadelphia.

Ms. McCray began her career in the late 1960s at the Insurance Co. of North America (INA). At the time, it was the nation’s largest insurance company. In 1982, INA merged with Connecticut General Corp. to form Cigna, and Ms. McCray’s career flourished in the new corporate environment.

She became manager of community relations, a member of the human resources team, and the face of Cigna in the community. She sat on various local corporate boards to represent Cigna’s interests, and managed several community-based employment programs for young people, offering co-op and internship opportunities.

“Marie excelled in this role and became a mentor to many young adults in the city of Philadelphia, opening doors and providing career opportunities for many high school and college students,” said her longtime friend Barbara Stanford-Allen.

As part of her job, Ms. McCray served on the Mayor’s Commission on Aging; the Mayor’s Commission on Technology; the Metropolitan Collegiate Center; and the program evaluation committee for the Private Industry Council of Philadelphia.

She retired from Cigna in 1996 and took two years off before reentering the workforce in 1998 as a human resources manager with Philadelphia OIC, the industrial opportunities center founded by the Rev. Leon Sullivan.

In 2000, she began a second career as a case manager at the Philadelphia Workforce Development Corporation. With the passage of the Welfare Reform Act of 1996, professionals were needed to help transition former welfare recipients into the work world, and she embraced the task.

"For the most part, this was a second chance for those who didn’t have access to a lot of opportunities that college graduates did,” Stanford-Allen said. “It gave her a sense of gratification.”

In 2002, she retired from full-time employment and began volunteering at the Belmont Mansion in Fairmount Park. She was a docent at the Underground Railroad Museum that is housed in the mansion. She oversaw many of the museum’s day-to-day activities and found joy in supervising young adults in the summer docent program. She continued volunteering until 2015.

Three years later, Ms. McCray joined the staff of Philadelphia Works, the workforce development board for Philadelphia, as a part-time employee to help in the summer youth employment program. She never stopped working.

Ms. McCray enjoyed reading and preparing gourmet dishes. Her Ethiopian greens, baked with spices, onion, and peppers, were legendary. She traveled widely, visiting the Panama Canal, Mexico, South America, Central America, and Copenhagen, Denmark.

Ms. McCray was charming, generous, and supportive of her friends. “She epitomized both style and grace and was a ‘lady’ in every sense of the word,” Stanford-Allen said.

She is survived by two cousins.

A viewing from 10 to 11:45 a.m. Monday, April 8, will be followed by a noon funeral at the Christopher G. Kent Funeral Home, 6506 Haverford Ave., Philadelphia. Burial is private.