Marilyn married at an early age to a lieutenant at Fort Jackson, S.C. during World War II.

Moving to the Midwest and having two children while living in a Michigan suburb, she had the extraordinary courage to chase her far fetched dreams of becoming a fashion model.

In 1956, at age 29, she moved to the arts mecca, New York City, to pursue a modeling career. All she had were some clippings from an Ohio newspaper and photos from a photographer who would eventually become her husband.

After a few years she was in national magazines, television commercials, a regular on daytime TV and ultimately in Vogue. In 1960 she actually earned more than $40,000, an unheard of amount of money at that time — close to $300,000 in today’s dollars, especially for a woman.

Knowing that beauty fades, she moved back to the familiar Detroit suburb to raise a second family.

She had two exceptional daughters. When they were grown she elected to leave the increasingly frigid winters of the Midwest and join her son on Whidbey Island and live for the next 30 years.

She became ensconced in the much-appreciated quieter life of Langley, working at The Wayward Son and as an occasional columnist for the South Whidbey Record. She also loved manning the visitor booth at Choochokam, and winning ribbons for her backyard flowers at the Whidbey Island Area Fair.

A serendipitous life to be sure, she passed with her beloved daughter, Molly, at her side on Oct. 3 with few regrets and a very full life.

Pretty much everyone in downtown Langley knew her, but few had any idea about the extraordinary adventure that her life was.

She is survived by her brother, Jack; two sons, Michael and Mark; and two daughters, Eliza and Molly.

Remembrances can be made to Hedgebrook, a female writers retreat on Whidbey Island.