Decade after decade, Madeline B. West taught others, both in the classroom and through community involvement. A teacher in Chicago’s public and Catholic schools for 43 years, Mrs. West took part in civil rights marches led by Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s and, in recent years, worked with fellow African-American alumni at DuSable High School to secure scholarships for graduates. Mrs. West, 72, died in her South Side home Tuesday, Jan. 13, of complications related to cancer. “She really believed that working people, everyday people, should have a voice in their community, in government, and could make a difference,” said Cassiette West-Williams, her daughter. “She was outspoken,” recalled Paul West Jr., her son. “She was direct and forthright. She didn’t mince words. She was all about moving people ahead.” Mrs. West held an undergraduate degree in art from Roosevelt University, after having also taken classes at the Art Institute of Chicago. She held a master’s degree in education, as well as a master’s degree in counseling and guidance, from Chicago Teachers College, now Chicago State University. For most of her years teaching in high schools and grade schools, she taught art. But Mrs. West also worked at the grass-roots level to help organize local civil rights activists when King came to Chicago. In 1957, she met Paul West, a Postal Service employee who later became a teacher, and they were married four years later. Mr. West died in 2002. After retiring, Mrs. West substitute-taught in the public schools and tutored students, traveled to China, Africa and Europe, helped raise scholarship money and was active in the 76th Street Block Club. She also was an avid reader who raised three children, one of whom, Paulus Robert, is a high school principal. The other two teach at high schools. Mrs. West also is survived by two brothers, William and Samuel Boney, and seven grandchildren. Visitation will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Our Lady of Peace Church, 79th Street and Jeffery Boulevard, Chicago. Mass will be said at 7:30 p.m. in the church.
