LaVerne (Wellens) Marshall

LaVerne Frances Wellens Marshall, passed away at St. Mary's Hospice House in Watkinsville, Georgia, on September 5, 2016, following a courageous battle with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, a rare neurological disorder. The daughter of Theodore R. and Frances L. Wellens, she was born on February 22, 1935 in Montgomery County, Maryland, and lived there until she left to attend and graduate from The College of Wooster, in Wooster, Ohio. She also attended Union Theological Seminary in New York City, and West Virginia University, where she received a master's degree in organizational communication.
After living in Jackson, Michigan for five years, in 1965, she and her former husband, the Rev. Samuel J. Marshall, Senior Minister at First Presbyterian Church, relocated to Parkersburg, West Virginia. She lived in Parkersburg for 49 years. During this time, she taught History and English at Parkersburg High School, and was employed by the Bureau of Public Debt as a Human Services Specialist, Employee Development Specialist, responsible for teaching managers interactional management and leadership skills.
She was deeply involved in community service and served on many civic boards. She was past President of the National Association of Arts and Letters, past president of the Parkersburg Nursery, Secretary of the Ohio River Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross, and a sustaining member of the Junior League of Parkersburg. She was also a member of Federally Employed Women, Parkersburg Chamber of Commerce Education Committee, Colonial Dames, and Daughters of the American Revolution. A professional musician and singer, she was an active member of Trinity Episcopal Church of Parkersburg, where she served in the vestry and sang in the choir.
Upon retirement, LaVerne relocated to The Georgia Club, Statham, Georgia, a beautiful golf, swim and tennis community, to be near her children, where she embraced the culture of a college town, the University of Georgia in Athens, started a book club in her neighborhood, Charleston Park, and made many new friends. She was also a member of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Athens, Georgia.
LaVerne had enormous energy, deep intelligence, natural grace, and remarkable warmth. She believed that life presented endless opportunities to learn. She embraced everyone she encountered with love and kindness, and she shared thus love of people and life, inspiring people to think lovingly and boldly on behalf of the larger community.
LaVerne faced her illness with the same fortitude and poise. She is survived by her son, John Scott Marshall of Jackson, Tennessee; daughter Lisa Marshall Harper, and son-in-law, Dr. Conrad Harper, and several cousins. She was predeceased by her brother, Raymond T. Wellens. A celebration of LaVerne's life will be held in Parkersburg, West Virginia, on a date to be determined, in the near future.