Posted on December 17, 2014

Rebekah reflects on her unexpected friendship with Marion

Guest Blog by Rebekah Karel, Mary Free Bed alumni

It is with a sad heart to inform you that my recent roommate at Mary Free Bed, Miss Marion, went to be with her Lord and Savior at 9pm on December 5, 2014. While I only roomed with her for a short seven days, I feel honored to have spent that time with her. There are those people in life that you just seem to “click” with, and Miss Marion was one of those people for me. We could chat and laugh for hours, or simply sit in silence – it always felt natural.

Miss Marion was one of those people who anyone could feel comfortable around. She was a woman unlike any I have known. She truly embodied the grace, kindness, and peace of her beloved Jesus Christ. We connected immediately over the fact that she was my grandmother’s Sunday school teacher back in the 1940s, and we continued to get closer as each day passed. When I left Mary Free Bed we made it a point to call each other nearly every day. What I admired most about Miss Marion is that she always saw the best in a person. She would tell me stories of her past, and she would talk about those in her stories only in a positive manner. She never gossiped.

I asked Miss Marion one day what advice she had for me after 100 years of life, and she said “Kiddo, it all comes down to trusting and obeying the Lord.” The faith that she had was just incredible to witness. I miss her dearly, but I know that she is in heaven where she so desired to go. I will finish with this funny story of our time together at Mary Free Bed.

My grandma made some butterscotch bars and Miss Marion just adored them. The next time my grandparents visited my grandma gave her an entire plate of her own. Miss Marion looked at me and said, “Kiddo, we need to find a place to hide these. I can’t have all my visitors taking one! There will be none left for me!” I then proceeded to put them in the bottom drawer of her dresser where she was able to get one whenever she wanted. This was the person Miss Marion was. A hilarious, warm-hearted, smart, woman of God. May she be remembered for generations to come.

Blessings, Rebekah Karel