A memorial service was held Monday, Jan. 5, at Slininger-Rossow Funeral Home in Jefferson for Marjorie Ann Coyne, 91, of Jefferson.
Father Bill Brunner offered words of comfort. Honorary bearers were Gary Ross, Catherine Healy, Jacqueline Fruhwirth, Adam Coyne, Zachary Healy Lima and Gus Walsh. Interment was at St Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Jefferson.
Marjorie Ann Coyne was born in Perry, IA, Dec. 12, 1923, the daughter of George Vail Ross and Olive Frances Storm Ross. She graduated as valedictorian from Bagley High School in 1941, where she was especially active in six-on-six girls basketball, attaining some notoriety for accuracy from the free throw line. Marjorie was married to Francis Joseph Coyne in Jefferson on Aug. 18, 1943.
Marjorie and Francis farmed near Cooper, IA, for many years and enjoyed the Cooper High School basketball and baseball seasons. They were members of Cooper and Jefferson area bridge clubs. Always an athlete, Marjorie continued her involvement in sports as a member of Jefferson bowling leagues and an enthusiastic golfer. She and Francis also enjoyed traveling and camping with family and friends.
Marjorie worked in nursing in Jefferson for nearly 40 years, first as a nurse’s aide at the Greene County Hospital and later as a receptionist for Jefferson doctors. Following her husband’s death in June, 1981 Marjorie left Jefferson for almost two decades of lay volunteer service to humanity that included extended stays in Hospital Albert Schweitzer, Haiti, West Indies, St. Jude Hospital in Vieux Fort, St. Lucia, West Indies, ILLVM (International Liaison for Lay Volunteers in Mission) and later the St. Vincent Pallotti Center , both on the campus of Catholic University, Washington D.C., IHM (Immaculate Heart of Mary Order) Sisters Center, Marywood College, Scranton, PA, and the St. Francis House of the Sisters of St. Francis, in Baltimore, MD. During her time with the ILLVM, Marjorie traveled to more 20 states and Ireland to tell her story and present some 85 mission appeals in churches and at conferences regarding ecumenical volunteerism.
Marjorie Coyne passed away on Dec. 30, 2014, at Regency Park Nursing and Rehab Center in Jefferson, at the age of 91 years. She was preceded in death by her husband Francis, her parents Olive and Vail Ross, her sisters Marian Gardner and Ruth Porter and three brothers who died shortly after birth.
Survivors include her stepmother Clarice Ross, her stepbrother Gary Ross (Liz), children Rebecca White and Michael Coyne (Peggy Russell), sister-in-law Madonna (Judge David) Harris, her grandchildren Catherine Healy, Jacqueline Fruhwirth (Scott) and Adam Coyne, great grandchildren Zachary Healy Lima and Stephen Augustus Walsh and nieces Kathy Porter Steffney (Gary) Liisa Porter Wand (Jeff), Jane Harris (Nick) Martino, Julie Harris and Rick Harris (Jill).
