Marjorie (Mead) CHAMPLIN DAVIS

CHAMPLIN, DAVIS, MEAD, WILCOX, OLIVER

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 6/13/2017 at 03:38:07

June 30, 1924 --- August 16, 2013

Marjorie M. Davis was born on June 30th 1924 in Eagle Grove Iowa. She was number six in a family of 8 children, seven girls and one boy. One of the sisters - baby Hope only lived a year. Her father Mearl Mead was an engineer for the railroad and her mother Vada Wilcox Mead was a stay at home mom. Vada passed away from cancer when Marge was a teenager leaving the oldest sister Virginia to care for all the siblings. Marge graduated from Eagle Grove High School in 1942, while there she excelled in many school activities most notably Badminton, Honor society and was a Iowa State champion in Secretarial Shorthand. She received a secretarial certificate from a 2 yr school. During World War II she worked in the Alameda County Hospital in the accounting department while she waited for her high school sweetheart Francis B. Champlin to return from the Pacific theater. Marge and Francis were married in Lincoln, Nebraska on June 25th 1946. In 1952, Marge and Francis moved their 2 small children (Marcia and Bruce) out to the wild West - Tucson Arizona!! Not having any jobs or money, they rented a very tiny house on the corner of Valencia and Old Nogales Highway. Francis who went by the nickname "Champ" found a job at Marana Air Park and Marge worked in the billing office of an appliance store on south sixth ave. in South Tucson.

In 1956, TUSD opened a new high school - Pueblo and Marge was chosen to be the assistant registrar. The next school year she was moved to the basement of Tucson High in preparation of the opening of a new north side high school - Catalina. She was the principals secretary and was responsible for opening the school in 1957. Tucson was growing so fast TUSD needed a east side school, Rincon in 1958. Marge was asked to open that high school and she said "alright - I CAN DO THAT". In 1963 TUSD needed a large high school on the southeast side of Tucson, Marge was asked if she would come and open that school - Palo Verde. She said "OK -I guess so." Around that time she became pregnant with her third child - son - Richard. When returning to work after the maturity leave , TUSD needed to open another high school far out east -called Sahuaro. Marge was asked if she could come and do that. After much thought she said "NO WAY", she preferred to finish out her 32 years in TUSD at Palo Verde and retired from the school district in 1988.

Marge spent her retirement years bowling, playing Bingo and taking care of her 7 grandkids - Jacob, Amy, Lisa, CJ, Ben, Ryan and Loren. She loved her church activites, her many friends, her flowers and potted plants and playing Scrabble. Her last years were spent at Desert Villa assisted living home with her beloved cat "Miss Kitty."

On Friday August 16, 2013 at 1 a.m. the Good Lord called Marge and asked her to open a new high school in Heaven, and Marjorie said "yes Lord, I will come."

Marjorie was preceded in death by her first husband Francis B. Champlin in 1992 and by her son Bruce Champlin in 2010. She is survived by daughter Marcia Oliver, son-in-law Brian, son Richard Champlin, daughter-in-law Christina, daughter-in-law Jill, youngest sister Amber Davis, brother-in-law Darrell and 7 grandchildren and her cat "Miss Kitty."