Marjorie Thelma Klingman, 98, of Anacortes, died Jan. 31, 2009, at Island Hospital in Anacortes, following a brief illness. She was born June 29, 1910, in Anacortes to Ella Moore Reed, whose mother was Duwamish, and Joseph Miller Reed, whose mother was Tlingit, who were both native wives of San Juan settlers.
Marjorie was raised on Decatur Island where her father ran Reed Shipyard and later moved to Anacortes in 1923 where she attended school and graduated from Anacortes High School. She married Arnold Klingman in 1933 after a whirlwind courtship of mostly dancing, which they both loved so much. He was a commercial fisherman, both in the San Juan Islands and Alaska. In 1935 their son, Ronald Klingman, was born. Arnold built their home on 12th and D Avenue where the Christmas displays were spectacular for years.
Marjorie enjoyed vegetable gardening and grew a large assortment of flowers that she liked to brighten the cemetery with. For years she and Arnold had a corn field in the back of the house and they used to sell many varieties of sweet corn. Marjorie loved to cook and home can fruit and pickles. She studied art at Skagit Valley College and painted beautiful paintings. A lot of her paintings she donated for raffles for the students at the Decatur one-room school, so they could go on extended field trips to places like London and Washington, D.C. She also tried her hand at some bead work and crochet.
In 1953 she purchased Marjorie’s Sunset Florist which she operated for 37 years. Because of the nature of the shop, she knew practically everyone in town through celebration of life events. When Arnold wasn’t fishing he was always at the shop helping her, along with her mother. It was a family affair to make corsages for all the school dances and different occasions. Marjorie was a member of the Garden Club, past president of the Soroptimists, and regularly attended the Samish elder lunches and the Summit Park Grange potlucks.
“She is well loved and will be missed greatly, as she touched the lives of many generations and much was learned from her life well-lived.”
Marjorie was preceded in death by her parents, Ella Moore Reed and Joseph Miller Reed; son, Ronald Klingman; husband, Arnold Klingman; sister, Sarah Reed Boynton; and niece, Vivian Boynton Dibble.
She is survived by her niece, Virginia Boynton Perkins; nephew, Leroy Klingman; cousin, Bob Reed; and many generations of shirttail cousins. Visitation was held Feb. 5 at Evans Funeral Chapel in Anacortes. A funeral service was held Feb. 6 at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Anacortes, followed by a reception and interment at Grand View Cemetery in Anacortes. Arrangements are in the care of Evans Funeral Chapel and Crematory, Inc., Anacortes, and the San Juan Islands. To share memories of Marjorie, please sign the online guest register at www.evanschapel.com.
