Marjorie L. " Margie "Carlson

Marjorie L. "Margie" Carlson was a thoughtful, giving, courageous woman. She was as happy attending to her family as she was excelling in business. Not only was she nice to everyone, she regarded everyone elses need as more important than her own. Self-less and loving, faithful and supportive, Margie lived a life that exemplified the God she served. Margie was born at a time when families were recovering from the Great Depression and political matters were stirring in Europe. Americans were inspired by Franklin Roosevelts Fireside Chats and swelled with pride over Jesse Owens gold medal at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. At home in Muskegon, Michigan, Elgie and Bertha (Popps) Garvey were delighted by the birth of their daughter Marjorie on October 9, 1936. With her brothers, Jack and Bill, and her sister Donna, Margie enjoyed a rather typical childhood of togetherness and teasing. She was very close to Jack, who nicknamed her Punk, and Bill was especially effective at pestering Margie (even more than she knew as a child). Long after they were grown, Bill confessed to taking a silver dollar from Margie when they were kids. He returned it to her in 2006, and she enshrined it under a glass dome as a testament to their endearing relationship. Margie was also blessed with enduring friendships. Along with her good friend Janice Frizzell, she attended a neighborhood girls youth group that served up inspiring Bible lessons as well as cookies and Kool Aid. Verses from the book of Romans, chapter 8, became her favorites, perhaps none more so than verse 38: I am convinced that neither death nor lifenor anything in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Undoubtedly, she and her family held on to that assurance when a tragic automobile accident in 1959 claimed the life of her beloved brother Jack. Faith, family, and friends were very important to Margie throughout her life. In her early teens, 14 year-old Margie landed her first job at Runzels Drug Store. It was every kids dream to work behind the counter making ice cream sodas and root beer floats. In junior high, she also became best friends with Donna Carlson, a friendship that became even closer when Donna introduced Margie to her twin brother Dennis. Margie and Dennis began dating in high school, and a year after she graduated from Muskegon High in 1954, they were married. They lived on Francis Street in Muskegon where they raised three lovely daughters: Lori Lynn was born in 1959, Diane Helene in 1961, and Pamela Ann in 1965. In 1970, the family moved to Grand Haven and Margie went to work. She was a receptionist for three orthopedic surgeons and a medical transcriptionist at Horizon Medical for many years. Even as a working woman, Margie remained a devoted mother who was very proud of her daughters and their accomplishments. Her motto was: All I want is for my daughters to be happy. And they were, with her vigilance (No matter how hard you try to hide something, Ill find out) and encouragement (Keep your chin up). As a family, they always gathered for evening meals and, on Sundays, they often went on picnics with extended family. They spent weekends camping in their 18-foot Winnebago at many of Michigans beautiful state parks. What started out as a fun activity for Margie and Dennis, became a family activity as they regularly went square dancing, with Dennis often calling the dances. Above all, Margie enjoyed family gatherings in the fall, because October was the month of two of her daughters birthdays as well as her own. What a great occasion for celebrating. Over the years, Margie demonstrated her sense of adventure. Dennis and she often took to the road on a Honda Aspencade motorcycle, seeing many sights across the country. Even after their divorce in 1990, Margie remained active, whether gardening or baking, going to church socials or Red Hat Society functions, golfing or crocheting with her pet pug Sami on her lap watching Tiger baseball or U of M football. Margie was The Lake Shore Hatters chapter historian who took her role as keeper-of-the-scrap-book-and-photo-album so seriously, her fellow hatters called her Hysterical Historian Vice Queen. She was also a member of the American Legion Auxiliary and Professional Business Women's Organization. Over and over, Margie invested in the lives of others as a loyal friend and a hard worker who could be counted on at all times. A year after her retirement in 1999, Margie was delighted by a new friendship. Her friends, Gus and Dee Majors, introduced Margie to Dick Behm, and the two of them became close companions. They enjoyed golfing, biking, walking, traveling to Florida in winter and going on cruises to east and west Caribbean, S. America, and the Panama Canal. As a result of their relationship, Margie also became close to Dicks children~Sue, Linda, Steve and Cathy~and his grandchildren, Macy and Garrett. Thats not surprising, since Margie was fun to be around, easily approachable, and very accepting of others. She was like a mother to everyone. Margie always maintained a positive spirit and was fond of saying, What will be, will be, if its meant to be. That was more a statement of faith than an attitude of futility, because Margie was spiritually strong and convinced of her place in heaven. Having just returned from a wonderful casino trip, Marjorie did not feel well and was admitted to the hospital where she was diagnosed with terminal acute leukemia. The cancer was in its final stages and after five days in the hospital, she was transferred to a hospice where she continued her brave battle for seven more days. For a woman of faith, Margies treasure was not measured in money, but in the joy of family and friendships and the certainty of life forever with God. Margie died very peacefully at Poppen House, surrounded by her daughters and devoted companion Dick Behm. Her last statement was: Keep the circle of love going. Margies loved ones will do exactly that as they remember their wonderful mother, sister, and friend. Mrs. Marjorie L. "Margie" Carlson, age 70, died on Tuesday, September 4, 2007. She is survived by her 3 daughters, Lori (Tom) Doubleday of Athens, MI, Diane Carlson of Grand Haven and Pamela Carlson of Grand Rapids; 1 brother, William Garvey of Florida; several nieces and nephews. A service to celebrate Margies life will be held at 11:00 AM on Monday, September 10, 2007 at her church, St. Pauls United Church of Christ with Pastor John Carpenter officiating. Relatives and friends are invited to meet the family on Sunday, 3-7 PM at Clock Funeral Home of Grand Haven. Memorial contributions may be made to Poppen House or St. Pauls United Church of Christ Youth Group. Please visit www.lifestorynet.com to sign the on-line guest registry or archive a memory of Margie.