Marjorie's father, Raymond A. Cook, was a farmer, about 18 miles west of Minneapolis. He was married to Josephine, the nurse that took care of his father at his last illness. Marj was their first child, born July 26, 1925, followed by Paul and George. Paul was an early riser, which put him in favor with his father. He was a cheerful child, but at age 7, when playing in a tree, a limb broke and he fell on his head and died. George lived until his death in 2004 after a long period of treatment for heart problems and lung cancer.
Marj went first to a nearby country grade school. She told of one time on a snowy day when the teacher had not arrived early to make the fire, so the children made it and made the stove so hot that it caused a chimney fire and almost burned the school down. Her last couple years of grade school were in a Minneapolis suburb, and her high schooling was at Robbinsdale, during which she stayed with her father's sister on weekdays. She then attended Bethel College in St. Paul for the one year of 1942-43. That was followed by three years at Kahler School of Nursing in Rochester, Minnesota, under the U. S. Cadet Core program. There she worked with wealthy patients from South America who came to the Mayo Clinic for treatment - they were generous with their tips!
She next was sent to Chicago's Laying In Hospital for training in child birth and care. World War II ended before her training was complete, so she fulfilled the requirement of her grant by serving in Wheaton, Minnesota, about 4 miles from South Dakota. Usually she was the only nurse on duty. One time she went with an injured man by ambulance (really that town hearse) to the nearest hospital that could treat him, which was in Fargo, North Dakota, about 75 miles away. After fulfilling her service obligation, she moved to Minneapolis, where she worked in the prestigious Northwestern Hospital, advancing to head floor nurse.
Marj maintained friendship with her Bethel college roommate, Ethel Jass, whose sister, Helen, was married to Stan's older brother. Helen once invited Marj and Stan to dinner at her home in St. Paul. Since they both lived in Minneapolis, they departed together on the same public transportation. No sparks flew at that time, but later Marj told of occasionally seeing Stan on the streetcar. Interest grew after a chance meeting on a Saturday when they both independently came to a restaurant at about the same time. She was in her nurse's uniform and Stan was on his way to a Youth for Christ program. He asked if she'd like to go along. "Yes" was her reply, and life changed, eventually resulting in their wedding on November 17, 1951.
Marj's family had no interest in spiritual things during their early life, but that changed when her brother Paul died. They had occasionally attended the Congregational church where they had been married. Her father was raised Catholic but hated it, and her mother was a liberal Methodist, but they had listened to Back to the Bible on the radio, so they knew something was missing. They visited various worship services until they settled on a little non-denominational church in North Minneapolis, later becoming members of Fourth Baptist Church.
Within just a few days after their marriage, Stanley had to be back in Atlanta, where he was serving in the Army. Their honeymoon was mostly a train ride from Minneapolis to Atlanta. Marj found work at Emory University Hospital, getting to it by public transportation, and most likely learning not to sit in the back, which was the Coloured section. After eight months Stan was discharged and they returned to Minneapolis.
Marj continued working, but not quite so hard after Stan graduated from the University of Minnesota with a BBA degree. They bought a house in Richfield, which they later sold when a place in Eden Prairie was built to their specifications. (Both are suburbs of Minneapolis.) When Stan took a federal government job in India, Marj was left to do all the packing because he was required to attend orientation in Washington, DC. They stayed in India two years, living in New Delhi. Stan could have stayed longer, but chose not to do so. Marj could not work there because doing that would take jobs away from nationals. She did, however, volunteer at a clinic for women. Once she took the ill wife of their servant to the clinic where they determined that she had an "eradicated disease" - malaria.
While they were in India, Marj's parents moved to Salem, Oregon. Stan's parents lived in Southern California, so they chose Oregon and bought a house in Beaverton after their return from India. Marj did not work as a nurse in Oregon, not even attempting to pass the test for a license there. She did spend much time caring for her parents, especially in their later years.
They sold their Beaverton home and moved to Oregon Baptist Retirement Homes on October 2, 2006. Looking back much later, Stan realized that Marj already had signs of dementia before they left Beaverton, but he did not recognize her problem. Marj moved to a memory care place, Delicate Orchid Care Home, on December 1, 2013. Toward the end, they hand fed her, and she spent all her time in bed. On September 8, 2014, for no apparent reason during transfer to her wheelchair, her left leg broke. She was in the hospital 11 days, followed by 21 days in a skilled nursing facility for therapy and rehabilitation, after which she returned to the memory care home. While there she was put on hospice care, and she passed away peacefully on December 11, 2014, at 3:40 P.M.
Marj was a good Christian. She would study for and attend a women's Bible Study Fellowship each week, eventually becoming a discussion leader. She also gathered with a group of women at a home in Beaverton for a weekly Bible study. Stan understands that no member of that group could speak out, unless they had prepared in advance for that day's study.
Marj is survived by Stanley, her husband of 63 years, his sister Ruth, and his brothers David and Alden. She and Stan had no children, but Marj also is survived by her brother George's widow Delores, three nieces, 11 grand nieces and their two grandsons, plus six great grand nieces and six great grand nephews.
We do not sorrow at her passing in the manner of those who have not accepted the gift of God's grace that provides salvation now and a glorious hope for eternity through Jesus Christ.
[At the memorial service for Marj, her brother-in-law David, whose academic specialties include social gerontology, added this postscript reminder: Do not be trapped by the conventional myth that talking with Stan about Marj (and similarly about departed loved ones with others who have been bereaved) is harmful. For most people, and especially for those who are Christians, sharing memories is a very wholesome way to help friends cope with their grief, even if it sometimes brings tears. Letting the tears flow is usually a healing process.]