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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 11, 2021)
Wednesday, August 11, 2021 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon 7 Obituaries Marvin Benson Meredith Chaffin McKittrick Taylor October 26, 1938—August 5, 2021 Passed July 26, 2021 Marvin Benson passed away peacefully in his Sisters home surrounded by family on August 5. Marvin was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up helping in the family milk and grocery business, and lifeguarding on the shores of Lake Michigan. After graduating from high school, Marvin enlisted and saw many parts of the world through the lens of the U.S. Marine Corps. Shortly after his discharge, he met the love of his life, Trine, a Norwegian nurse working in the hospital at which he was a patient. They were soon married and blessed with two sons, Benny and Sam. The young family moved from the big city of Chicago to Parker, Colorado, for the adventure of building a house and raising their boys on a farm in the country. Marvin spent a 30-year career as a lithographic pressman. After retiring, Marvin and Trine moved to Sisters in 2008, fol- lowing their granddaugh- ter, Cammi, whose family moved to Sisters two years earlier. Marvin immediately became involved in the local community. As a lifelong gardener, he built the Sisters Community Garden located at the Sisters Eagle Airport. As a skilled wood crafts- man, Marvin was a daily volunteer at the Sisters High School in the woodshop classes. He developed the unique skill of <painting with wood,= called intarsia art. He passed on this skill by teaching many students as the leader of a 4-H wood- working club, the Sisters Sawdusters. Marvin also loved to swim early in the morning at Sisters Athletic Club. To Marvin, all kids have special needs, but some more than others, and for those he always had a soft spot and an uncanny kind- ness to help. In Colorado, he was an active volun- teer at the Praying Hands Ranch, connecting kids and horses as therapy for both mental and physical needs. In Sisters, he set up unique gardening experiences in the Sisters Community Garden for the special-needs kids, who became known as Veterans memorial... PHOTO BY LANCE TROWBRIDGE Family members attended a memorial honoring deceased Sisters veterans Dr. Lindsay Simmons, Frank Leithauser, and Gordon Halsten at Sisters Village Green on Saturday, August 7, 2021 Sisters Dental WE ARE HERE FOR YOU! Trevor Frideres, D . M . D . Greg Everson, D . M . D . 541-549-2011 491 E. Main Ave. • Sisters www.sistersdental.com Hours: Mon., 9 a.m.-6 p.m.; Tues.-Thurs., 8 a.m.-5 p.m.; Fri., 7 a.m.-3 p.m. <Marvin9s kids,= and offered one-on-one time in his per- sonal woodshop. Marvin is deeply missed by his devoted wife of 57 years, Trine Benson; his two sons and daughters-in-law Benny and Julie Benson, and Sam and Anne Benson; two grandchildren, Erick Benson and Cammi Benson; his sisters, Anne, Bobby, and Fran; and his Rhodesian ridgeback, Zoey. T h e B e n so n fa mily wishes to thank Partners in Care, and the Sisters Fire medics for their outstanding help and support. Donations in honor of Marvin can be made to the Sisters School Foundation, Special Needs Program. Meredith Chaffin McKittrick Taylor, loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully at the side of her beloved hus- band, Al, on July 26, 2021 at the age of 90. Meredith was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She graduated from Smith College in 1952. Meredith spent most of her adult life in Santa Barbara, California. In 1997, she began spending the sum- mer months at Black Butte Ranch, where she became a cherished part of the Sisters community. Besides rais- ing four children, she was actively involved in the Episcopal church and other nonprofit organizations in Santa Barbara and Sisters. She valued most being with her family and friends, including the group of life- long friends she met at Marlborough Prep School. She was an accomplished bridge player, an avid reader, and loved the arts. She stayed active by taking walks around Black Butte Ranch, swimming, hiking on the Metolius River, and playing golf. Meredith is survived by her husband, Al; her first husband, James; her brother Larry; children Mimi (Dennis), Jim (Diane), Peter (Jennifer), and Ann (Lee); grandchildren Evan (Caitlin), Heather (Miles), Timothy, Megan, and Brian; and last but definitely not least, great-grandson Amos. She will be remembered for her intellect, quick wit, and generosity. She believed in a lifelong commitment to self-improvement, and was able to mentor and help many people along the way. She will be put to rest at her family plot at San Gabriel Cemetery in Los Angeles in a private ceremony.