A5
THE ASTORIAN • SATuRdAy, FEbRuARy 20, 2021
OBITUARIES
Marion Elizabeth Blake
Seaside
April 29, 1918 — Feb. 6, 2021
My mother wanted me to be brief on
this part of the assignment. If you knew my
“Mudder,” you knew she loved to be the
Queen Bee, and was truly a force of nature.
Some of her songs, quotable quotes and
one-liners included: “To thine own self be
true.” — Shakespeare
“Accent the positive, eliminate the neg-
ative, latch onto the affirmative, don’t mess
with Mr. In-Between!” sung to the tune of
Johnny Mercer and The Pied Pipers.
She loved Voltaire’s wisdom: “The pur-
suit of pleasure must be the goal of every
rational person.” And of course, Coco
Chanel’s understanding: “In order to be irre-
placeable, one must always be different.”
So what were her super powers? She
was a good sport, flexible and a straight
arrow. What did she believe was her great-
est asset? Patience … patience can be a bit-
ter seed, but it yields rrrrrrrrich fruits!
When asked what she attributes her lon-
gevity to, she easily shares: Good genes,
red wine, dark chocolate, being with the
ones you love, great friends and having
fun!
Marion was born April 29, 1918, in Den-
ver, Colorado, to Marion Elizabeth and
Donald Twiss. The Spanish flu, one of the
deadliest influenza pandemics, was raging.
Marion’s father was a pharmacist and her
grandpa, Dr. Noble Macomber, had to deal
with this deadly health issue, which did not
have a vaccine to come to the rescue. The
Spanish flu had to burn itself out, but not
before killing between 50 and 100 million
people worldwide.
Marion’s mother had been plagued with
a serious heart condition, and died at 42,
leaving her at age 13, and her older brother
Stanley Craig, 17, in the midst of the Great
Depression. Her father remarried within six
months, believing Marion needed a mother.
Her brother enlisted in the U.S. Army.
Marion rarely discussed her heartbreak-
ing youth. She chose to make the best life
for herself. She graduated from North Den-
In the 1980s, they were drawn back to
ver High School and enrolled in the Uni- the warmth of the sunshine in Phoenix and
versity of Denver. She excelled at writ- Scottsdale, Arizona. More deserved time
ing, sports, dancing and all of the
with Mr. Perfect dancing, swim-
ming, golf and bridge, along with
social skills around college life.
the delight of their three daugh-
She loved her life, and wanted
ters and three grandchildren.
to find her perfect soul mate. She
More hardship came into Mar-
met Mr. Perfect, always calling
ion’s life in 1996 and 1997. She
him the Big Man on Campus!
lost the love of her life, her hus-
Walter Pershing Blake, a three-
band of 55 years, followed by the
sport letterman, all years, smart,
crossing of her middle daughter,
6 feet 2 inches, eyes of blue, great
Judy, to cancer, at age 49.
dancer and a veterinarian student
She was encouraged, and
at Colorado State University in
Marion Blake
made her last move to Seaside
Fort Collins.
in 1998 so she could be close to
She transferred to Colo-
rado State so they could be close. They her youngest daughter, Mary. Her oldest
married May 27, 1941, at half past four, daughter, Marny, and her husband, Paul,
the day after he graduated. She always also were drawn to the beach and to be near
referred to their perfect relationship of 55 this most remarkable and resilient woman.
years.
She was living with Marny and Paul when,
Marion and Persh joined his father’s vet- in 2009, Marny died of cancer, and Paul, in
erinary practice in Greeley, Colorado, just 2010, died of a broken heart due to the loss
after they were married. They had a short of the love of his life.
assignment at the University of Missouri,
Marion had always had the goal of liv-
where Persh was a professor of medicine ing to be 100. Not only did she reach that
and surgery. They started their family and goal, Seaside Mayor Jay Barber got the
opportunity to proclaim April 29, 2018,
had three beautiful girls.
They wanted to be in a warmer climate, Marion Elizabeth Blake Day. To top that,
and moved to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1954. on her 102nd birthday, a drive-by commu-
Marion raised her three girls while devel- nity parade saw her become an honorary
oping her championship golf game and detective for the Seaside police!
master’s quality bridge game.
She was still kicking butt, playing com-
In 1963, the Blakes moved back to Gree- petitive duplicate bridge three days per
ley, Colorado, to take over his father’s week, up until March 4, 2020, when we
practice. Marion took on a whole new role all were quarantined due to the COVID-19
in the family. She cared for the kids, man- pandemic.
aged the household and became a surgical
Mary moved into Marion’s house in
assistant and office manager for the solo 2012, and they and their beloved four-
practice.
legged friends lived happily together until
In 1975, they retired and moved to one Marion’s peaceful crossing Feb. 6, 2021,
of their beloved areas, Estes Park, Colo- just a couple of months before her 103rd
rado. From their little cabin they could look birthday.
down into the village and see where they
Marion was preceded in death by her
used to meet and date during the summers husband, Dr. W. P. Blake; Judy Wagner, her
at Trout Haven.
middle daughter; and Marny Philippon, her
oldest daughter.
Her survivors include Mary Blake,
daughter; grandchildren, Kristi Skiba,
Laura Warren and Jesse Blake; and
great-grandchildren, Bridgette and Hayden
Skiba and Brandon Blake Short.
My Mudder wanted to live forever!
You could help her do that by keeping
her spirit alive in your heart, memory and
stories. Always remember to love your
mother!
A special thank you to the caring hos-
pice team who gave such good compas-
sionate care to us, and helped my mother
cross at home, in the most beautiful and
sacred space.
We will have a party to celebrate Marion
in the fall, when it’s safe for us to gather.
Until then … my Mudder would want you
to know she’s happy and dancing with the
love of her life. She wishes you all aloha,
and happy trails to you!
Please, no flowers. If you would like to
celebrate Marion, please consider a dona-
tion of your time, talents or treasure to your
favorite cause or to the Clatsop County
Animal Shelter.
Miss Me — But Let Me Go
When I come to the end of the road,
And the sun has set for me,
I want no rites in a gloom-filled room.
Why cry for a soul set free?
Miss me a little — but not too long,
And not with your head bowed low.
Remember the love that we once shared,
Miss me — but let me go.
For this is a journey we all must take,
And each must go alone.
It’s all part of the Master’s plan,
A step on the road to home.
When you are lonely and sick at heart,
Go to the friends you know,
Bury your sorrows in doing good deeds.
Miss me — but let me go.
Hughes-Ransom Mortuary is handling
the final arrangements.
SPORTS
Dierickx named interim Seaside softball coach
The Astorian
Joel Dierickx is officially the new soft-
ball coach at Seaside High School.
Dierickx takes over for Jessica Garri-
gues, who will step away from her head
coaching duties for one year while on
parental leave. The news was announced
at a school district board meeting on
Tuesday.
Garrigues plans to return in 2022. She
will continue to serve as a volunteer coach.
A longtime baseball coach with the
Gulls, Dierickx becomes the seventh head
coach for Seaside softball since 2015.
Dierickx was an assistant to Garrigues
last year, after spending 21 years as the
Seaside baseball coach, stepping down
after the 2018 season.
“I will be stepping back into the head
SEVENDAY FORECAST FOR ASTORIA
TODAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
coach role next season (2022), and we
have a plan in place for this season,” Gar-
rigues said. “We have lots to accomplish
this season and in the future, and we have
plans in place to make that happen … not
simply promises and hopes. Stay on the
lookout for our continued growth.”
Seaside recently opened its Broadway
Field batting cage facility, for use by both
baseball and softball.
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
Gary Henley/The Astorian
Seaside’s Joel Dierickx will be trading
baseball for softball this spring.
REGIONAL FORECAST
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
Seattle
47 44
50 47
51 41
47 37
48 38
Cloudy with a
Periods of rain Heavy showers Spotty showers
shower
Rain
48 38
48 37
Rain possible
Showers
possible
Aberdeen
Olympia
46/43
48/43
Wenatchee
Tacoma
Moses
Lake
47/41
ALMANAC
UNDER THE SKY
TODAY'S TIDES
Astoria through Thursday
Tonight’s Sky: Nicolas Coperni-
cus’ birthday (1473). First quarter
moon (10:48 a.m.).
Astoria / Port Docks
Temperatures
High/low ................................ 50/39
Normal high/low .................. 52/37
Record high .................. 67 in 1958
Record low .................... 23 in 1955
Precipitation
Thursday ................................. 0.31”
Month to date ........................ 7.74”
Normal month to date ......... 4.70”
Year to date .......................... 23.65”
Normal year to date ........... 14.90”
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2021
Time
6:26 a.m.
8:44 p.m.
7.5 12:16 a.m. 3.7
5.4 2:15 p.m. 1.7
Cape Disappointment
6:16 a.m.
8:37 p.m.
Source: Jim Todd, OMSI
Hammond
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today .................. 7:10 a.m.
Sunset tonight ............... 5:49 p.m.
Moonrise today ........... 11:21 a.m.
Moonset today ............... 2:18 a.m.
First
Full
Last
New
6:25 a.m.
8:40 p.m.
Warrenton
6:21 a.m.
8:39 p.m.
Knappa
7:03 a.m.
9:21 p.m.
Depoe Bay
Feb 19 Feb 27 Mar 5 Mar 13
5:30 a.m.
7:56 p.m.
7.3 1:31 p.m.
5.2
none
1.9
7.5 1:50 p.m.
5.4
none
1.6
7.9 12:00 a.m. 3.8
5.8 1:59 p.m. 1.8
7.8 1:17 a.m.
5.7 3:16 p.m.
3.1
1.5
7.6 1:04 p.m.
5.5
none
2.0
City
Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Denver
Honolulu
Houston
Los Angeles
Miami
New York City
Phoenix
San Francisco
Wash., DC
Today
Hi/Lo/W
Sun.
Hi/Lo/W
52/32/s
33/21/sf
25/19/pc
46/35/s
44/19/pc
81/71/sh
55/45/pc
69/49/s
75/65/s
36/22/sf
76/48/s
60/46/pc
35/22/s
57/44/s
34/21/s
33/24/sn
54/27/pc
38/23/s
82/71/r
66/39/c
73/49/s
76/70/pc
36/27/s
71/45/s
62/47/s
38/30/s
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy,
c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms,
r-rain, sf-snow fl urries, sn-snow, i-ice.
38/30
Hermiston
The Dalles 46/38
Enterprise
Pendleton 35/24
40/34
46/36
La Grande
38/30
50/40
NATIONAL CITIES
High (ft.) Time Low (ft.)
32/30
Kennewick Walla Walla
39/35 Lewiston
44/37
47/41
Salem
Pullman
45/32
Longview
47/44 Portland
50/42
31/29
Yakima 41/35
47/40
Astoria
Spokane
40/32
Corvallis
50/40
Albany
49/40
John Day
Eugene
Bend
50/41
43/29
39/26
Ontario
40/23
Caldwell
Burns
37/21
41/23
Medford
50/35
Klamath Falls
41/23
City
Baker City
Brookings
Ilwaco
Newberg
Newport
Today
Hi/Lo/W
38/26/sf
50/40/sh
46/44/sh
50/42/c
47/43/sh
Sun.
Hi/Lo/W
37/29/sf
50/41/c
48/47/r
53/48/r
49/46/r
City
North Bend
Roseburg
Seaside
Springfi eld
Vancouver
Today
Hi/Lo/W
50/43/sh
50/39/sh
47/44/sh
50/40/sh
50/42/sh
Sun.
Hi/Lo/W
52/45/c
51/38/c
49/47/r
51/45/r
51/49/r