Obituary for Marjorie Dew

Marjorie Ann Dew

April 10, 1925 – December 22, 2022

Marjorie Ann Schairer Dew passed peacefully on Thursday, December 22, 2022, at age 97, surrounded by her family at Saint Simeon’s Senior Community in Tulsa, OK. A celebration of Marjorie’s life will be held on Tuesday, January 17, 2023, at 1:00 p.m., Grace Episcopal Church in Ponca City, OK.

Marjorie was born April 10, 1925, at home on the family farm in Scio Township, Michigan. She was the daughter of Arthur George and Anna Meta Hinderer Schairer. She had two brothers, Raymond Schairer, passed (Jane, passed), and survived by her younger brother Lloyd Schairer (Marie).

She attended Parker School, a one-room school house, in Lima Township, just cater-cornered from the farm, for grades 1 through 8. When it came time for Marjorie to go to the 9th grade, her father told her she had a choice – she could be a big fish in a little pond (Dexter), or a little fish in a big pond (Ann Arbor). She chose Ann Arbor. The first week in school was the hardest thing she’d ever done, but she realized if she could get through that, she could get through anything. “It was a pivotal decision for me. You learn to adapt, you have to be open to new experiences.” Marjorie attended Slauson Jr. High School for 9th grade, and graduated from Ann Arbor High School in 1942 at the age of 17. She attended the University of Michigan, graduating in June of 1946 with a Bachelor of Arts with a major in Zoology.

Marjorie took a position with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota after graduation, taking the train by herself from Detroit to Rochester, changing trains in Chicago, another pivotal moment in her life. There she worked in the Serology Laboratory from 1946 to 1948. She returned to Ann Arbor in 1948 at the University of Michigan Medical School Anatomy Department. She worked in cancer research and co-authored multiple technical papers with Dr. Burton L. Baker

Marjorie met John Norman Dew, a PhD student from Oklahoma, on a blind date to a U of M hockey game. On January 17, 1953, they married in the University of Michigan League Chapel. Following John’s completion of his doctorate, they moved to Ponca City, Oklahoma, where he had accepted a position with Continental Oil Co. Marjorie worked in the Land Section Mineral Lease Records from 1953-1954, then retired to raise a family. John passed in 2007 in Ponca City.

They were blessed with three daughters, Barbara Dew Rupert (Tony), Elizabeth Anne Dew, Nancy Dew Hardebeck (Jim); two sons, John Michael Dew, who passed in 1978, and Robert Dew (Wendy Silipo); seven grandchildren Nick, Jake, Chris, Ben, Andrea, Harlow and Ry. Throughout her life Marjorie was active in her church, her children’s & grandchildren’s lives and extracurricular activities, and her community. Marjorie was a communicant of Grace Episcopal Church, served as Church School teacher and was a member of the Vestry.

She was active as a leader in both Cub Scouts and Camp Fire Girls. She served on the Camp Fire Board of Directors, and received several adult volunteer service awards, including the Gulick Award, Camp Fire’s highest recognition for extraordinary lifetime leadership. She was a member of the Ponca City Library Board, serving as secretary, and a Member as well as secretary of the Twentieth Century Club. A Fifty-Year-Member of the American Association of University Women, Marjorie was honored as one of AAUW’s Women of the Year.

In 1979, at age 54, Marjorie went back to school at Northern Oklahoma College, and enrolled in the nursing program. She enjoyed the “back-to-school experience immensely,” graduating with an Associates Degree in Nursing in 1981. She worked as a volunteer RN in the American Red Cross Mobile Blood Bank in Ponca City.

Her hobbies included reading, sewing, watercolor painting and sketching. She enjoyed travel, spending time at the Colorado cabin and hiking in the mountains. She was an avid college football fan for her three favorite teams, U/M, OU, OSU (Go Blue!). She also had a keen interest in current events and politics, and never failed to vote, even at 97. She was a devoted and loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, mentor, role model and friend. She is also remembered for her extraordinary faith and resilience, living with debilitating rheumatoid arthritis, keeping a sharp mind, and for her kindness, thoughtfulness, and compassion for others. She lived her life with grace.

The family would like to extend their deepest gratitude to the staff at Saint Simeon’s for the loving care they gave “Mrs. Dew” the last ten years. And also to Seasons Hospice, who helped her transition from this life. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made in Marjorie’s name to Grace Episcopal Church Ponca City or the Saint Simeon’s Foundation – https://saintsimeons.org/foundation/

Source: Trout Funeral Home