Marlene Jean Warmé, 81, passed away peacefully at her home on June 12, 2021 in Queen Creek, Arizona. She was the eldest child born to Marcus Stuart and Helen Young Howard on September 15, 1939 in Glendale, CA. She is preceded in death by her husband (Klaus Albert Warmé), her brother (Marcus Richard Howard) and her son (Jeffrey Albert Warmé) and is survived by her son (Paul H. Warmé), daughter (Susi Warmé Mushinski) and six beloved grandchildren.
As the eldest of seven siblings, Marlene spent much of her youth growing up in the Los Angeles and Glendale, CA areas helping raise her brothers and sisters. She graduated from Hoover High School in 1957 and from BYU in Provo, UT in 1961 with a degree in Education.
Following her graduation from college, she married her high school sweetheart, Klaus Warmé, in 1962 in a private ceremony on the island of Maui. Shortly thereafter, she began the first phase of her career
teaching elementary school children in the Newhall, CA area before putting her career on hold to allow her and Klaus to raise their three children Jeff, Paul and Susi in Frontenac, MO and La Cañada, CA.
Following Klaus’s passing in 2005, she moved to Chandler, AZ and reinvented herself by renewing her teaching credentials and restarting her career nearly 40 years later. She was quite proud of having received among the highest levels of teaching credentials and certifications within her school. She was known for having an unparalleled work ethic, having just completed another year of teaching at Lincoln Elementary in Mesa, AZ at the age of 81.
She was adored by her coworkers for her engaging style, clear competence and experience – often successfully teaching some of the most challenging and underprivileged pupils in the school to read and write – and the leadership she demonstrated with her colleagues. She frequently brought her love of music to her classrooms by playing guitar for her students, loved amassing collectables, and had a wonderful sense of wit to keep life humorous and fun. If you happen to be a fellow collector of antiques, Kachina dolls or other Native American crafts, you were in for a lengthy conversation with Marlene.
Marlene will be greatly missed and will live on in memories as our mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, colleague and friend.
Remaining mindful of the country’s emergence from the pandemic, and to allow more people to join and pay their respects, Memorial Services for Marlene will be held virtually via video conference at 11:00am PDT, Sunday, June 27, 2020.
Online condolences and memories can be shared at:
http://santanmountainviewfuneralhome.com/obituaries/marlene-jean-warme-obituary/
Her family expresses their gratitude for the love and support they’ve received from Marlene’s numerous friends, coworkers and family members. In lieu of flowers, the family asks you to consider contributions in her name to Lincoln Elementary School in Mesa, Arizona to continue the noble work of helping teach literacy to our youngest generations. Donations can be made either:
Online
https://az-mesa.intouchreceipting.com
or by mailing checks made out to Lincoln PTO to:
Lincoln Elementary School
930 S Sirrine
Mesa, AZ 85210