Obituaries

Marjorie Ford Marugg-Wolfe

Photo of Marjorie Ford Marugg-Wolfe
Rogers resident Marjorie Ford Marugg-Wolfe, Ed.D., a nationally recognized advocate for the educational aspirations of single parents, died Sunday, March 3, 2013, age 79. A passionate teacher, she worked tirelessly to encourage women to pursue higher education to improve their lives. Born Dec. 16, 1933, in Roswell, N.M., to Adley Grady Ford and Annie Lee (Thrasher) Ford, she was the sixth of nine children. In 1936, the family moved to Benton County, farming on Pleasant Grove Road in Bellview community. As a high school senior, Marjorie was society editor for the "Rogers Daily News" and co-edited the school yearbook while serving as homemaker after the death of her mother. Valedictorian of the Rogers Class of 1951, she earned a bachelor's degree, educational specialist, and doctor of education degrees from the University of Arkansas and a master's degree from the University of Maryland. Marjorie married Alfred F. Marugg of Stamford, Texas, in Fayetteville in 1958, and the couple lived in St. Louis and Oxon Hill, Md., returning in 1977 to Rogers, where their daughters, Mikki and Tami, graduated high school. After her husband's death in 1990, Marjorie was remarried in 1992 to Rogers '51 classmate John R. Wolfe. As coordinator of the Displaced Homemakers/Women in Transition Program at Northwest Vo-Tech in the 1980s, Marjorie found that unexpected expenses could deter single parents from pursuing the education they needed in order to escape poverty. To meet the need, Marjorie worked with countless generous volunteers and donors to start the Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Benton County in 1984. Marjorie co-founded the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund, and the program has spread to 70 Arkansas counties. In 2008, Marjorie became the founding president of ASPIRE (Assisting Single Parents in Realizing Education), a nationwide support network for single parent scholarship programs across the country. The organizations Marjorie helped found have awarded nearly 30,000 scholarships to single mothers and fathers, totaling over $16 million. Her advocacy for single parents was recognized by President George W. Bush at the White House in 2002, when she received the President's Community Volunteer Award from the Point of Light Foundation. In 2005, she received the Community Service Award from the State Department of Human Services and the Governor's office. In 2012, the University of Arkansas College of Education and Health Professions recognized her as Outstanding Alumna in Education. An early and active member of Fellowship Bible Church, Marjorie served in the women's ministry and helped establish the GriefShare program. She and John enjoyed travel to Europe and Indonesia and across the country, boating on Beaver Lake, and Class of '51 gatherings. Passionate about family history, Marjorie contributed the Grady Ford article in "History of Benton County, Arkansas." At reunions, Marjorie was known for gathering everyone around to share family stories with younger generations. Marjorie Ford Marugg-Wolfe was preceded in death by her first husband, Alfred F. Marugg; and siblings, Walton Ford, Garland Ford and Alta Swanner. She is survived by her husband, John; two daughters, Mikki Bates of Tulsa, Okla., and Tami Marugg of Sarasota, Fla.; three grandchildren; siblings, Mildred Hartfield of Rogers, W.H. Ford, Ivalene Johnson, Val Ford and Sharon Berbert; stepchildren, John R. Wolfe III, Barbara Dominguez and Beverley Nollet; two step-grandchildren, and two step-great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 9, 2013, at Fellowship Bible Church in Rogers, with Pastor Robert Cupp officiating. Visitation will be from 9:30 a.m. until service time. Private burial will be at National Cemetery in Fayetteville. Memorials may be made in honor of Marjorie Wolfe to the Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Benton County (spsfbc.org), (479) 254-8550; or ASPIRE (aspireus.org), (479) 973-0800. Arrangements have been entrusted to Stockdale-Moody Funeral Services in Rogers. Words of comfort may be expressed or memories shared at stockdalefuneral.com. Words of thanks and remembrance for display at the memorial service can be emailed to [email protected].

Published March 6, 2013

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