Marilyn G. Ward

Marilyn Gayle Ward, age 86, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, January 14, 2025. She was born June 8,1938 in Baraboo, Wisconsin to Milton and Thelma (Gibeaut) Alexander and grew up there until 1st grade when she moved to Illinois. In 1957, she graduated from Earlville High School. The following year, on April 19, 1958, she married Robert Ward. They raised their 4 children in Paw Paw, Illinois. Robert preceded her in death on October 29, 1981.

Marilyn worked as a bookkeeper for much of her career. She worked at the lumberyard in Paw Paw, the Paw Paw Co-Op, the Meriden grain elevator, and Northern Illinois University.

She was a very talented and inspired artist, designing posters for community events, taking up painting, pottery, weaving, miniatures among a wide variety of other crafts, excelling at all. While watching her favorite television shows and films, she was always crocheting. She loved yarn and owned more scissors than things she could cut with them. She read voraciously, did crossword puzzles, loved to travel and passionately tended to her gardens and flowerbeds.

Marilyn was very active in her community, entertaining crowds at many parades as a member of the aptly named Crazy Ladies, helping establish and operate the Paw Paw Public Library and later serving on the board of the regional library system. She was a member of Lutheran social services and in her retirement years worked with prisoners, recording them reading books for their children. She had been a member of the Paw Paw United Methodist Church and later attended Compton Lutheran Church with her longtime companion, Stan Rosenkrans, who preceded her in death in 2006.

She is survived by her children, Michael (Mari) Ward of Poplar Grove, Wendy (Doug) Schnorr of Shabbona, Daniel (Tracy Blue) Ward of Cloquet, Minnesota, and Mark A Ward of Chicago, Illinois, her sister, Virginia Wruck and half brother, Jack Wiete. Preceding her in death were her sister, Dorothy Cox and brother, Allen Alexander. She is also survived by her 7 grandchildren – Barry, Kyle (Kat), and Nick Schnorr, Katie (Colin) Juraska, Jason Ward, Jessica (Shane) Lansford, and Julianne (Nick) Keller and great-grandchildren – Cooper and Kira, Oliver and Quinton, Maisie and Freya, and Sophia.

A memorial service and open house will take place at the Paw Paw United Methodist Church, 370 Wiley Ave, Paw Paw, Illinois on February 23, 2025 from 2:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m.

Cards may be sent to: c/o Mike Ward, PO Box 378, Poplar Grove, IL 61065-0378 or c/o Wendy Schnorr, 404 W Navaho, Shabbona, IL 60550. A memorial fund has been established.

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