Marian Ingley

Marian Louise Wagner Bahr Ingley's lifelong journey started on the 15th of June 1922 in Cedar Falls, IA with her birth to parents Francis and Blanche Thompson Wagner. She spent much of her childhood in Northeastern Iowa with her maternal grandparents on the family farm while her mother taught at various schools throughout northern Iowa. In the early 1930s, Marian traveled to northeastern Ohio to join her mother who secured a teaching position in Painesville, OH. Blanche married an engineer by the name of Jack Bahr. Marian adopted her stepfather's name. She became an older sister with the birth of Bruce, who Marian affectionately called her 'kid brother.' Her beloved Boston terrier, Buster, soon joined the family. She graduated Painesville's Harvey High School and attended at Wellesley College. While at Wellesley, she met a talented young man who played on the Yale basketball team by the name of Bert Ingley who also hailed from Painesville. The young couple wed in June of 1942 at Yale following Bert's graduation and induction into the Navy. They relocated to Washington, DC where Marian worked for Sherwin-Williams and Bert worked at the Department of the Navy. Their first child, Adrienne Cobourn, was born in March of 1944. D-Day, VE Day and VJ Day came and went in rapid succession ending with Bert's discharge from the Navy and the family's relocation south to Houston, TX. Many family stories abound of living in Houston in the days when only movie theatres were likely to have air conditioning. A second daughter, Katherine Kirkwood, was born in July 1947. Opportunity knocked again and the family of four headed north to Cleveland, OH just in time for the Indians to win the American League pennant. The 'office pool' on the World Series provided the crib and bassinette for third daughter, Elizabeth Libby Thompson's arrival in October 1948. The family lived in Lyndhurst. With Bert taking the Mayfield bus to work and the purchase of a used car, Marian obtained her driver's license - very useful in shepherding her three daughters. The Korean War took Marian's family back to the Washington, DC area with Bert's recall by the Navy. Safely back in Lyndhurst, the family grew to six with the birth of Kevin James in 1956 and soon after relocated to a larger home in Shaker Heights. The 1960s and1970s brought many changes with Adrienne graduating Shaker Heights High School and Mt. Holyoke College, teaching for a year in Kuwait, receiving her Master's Degree from the University of Chicago and serving as a key member of Metro - the alternative high school of the Chicago Public School System. Kathy graduated from The Ellis School and Carnegie Mellon University, taught in Virginia and Maryland and married Charles Brandt, MD. Libby graduated from The Ellis School, followed Marian's footsteps and attended Wellesley College, married Ross Cornell, and brought the first grandchildren, Ross Hunter and Valerie White Cornell. Kevin graduated from The American University. Marian served as a board member and ultimately President of the Cleveland Wellesley Club whose fundraising efforts included the sale of many, many tubes of Christmas wrapping paper. Her travels included family car trips to New York City and Washington, DC and "the great trip west" that covered 7, 700 miles in 23 days; the discovery of Treasure Cay in the Bahamas; and, a six month overseas assignment to Sao Paulo Brazil with the opportunity to learn Portuguese, experience churrasco cooking and a world far from the Midwest. The 1980s and 1990s saw Bert's retirement from Diamond Shamrock and the opportunity to pore over the stocks & bonds pages in the morning paper to plan their next investment moves. They made many, many road trips to see children and grandchildren, friends, and of course to both Wellesley and Yale for their 40th and 45th college reunions. On trips to southern Florida to see Marian's mother, they sometimes traveled over to Treasure Cay. Marian hosted family Christmases in Shaker with cookie baking and storytelling 'The Night Before Christmas' with Hunter and Valerie listening in awe with the aromas of roast turkey and all the fixings filling the house. Kevin's graduation with a Master's Degree from the University of Virginia brought them to Charlottesville and his marriage to Carol Edelen saw Marian travel to Chicago. Marian became a grandmother for the third and fourth times with the birth of Adrienne's twins, Aaron Cobourn James and Alexandria Tamar Marian Ingley. Libby married Tom Mullin. Both Marian's mother and the love of her life, Bert, passed on during this time. The late 1990s and 2000s saw the marriage of Valerie to John Baartz and the births of Marian's great-grandchildren, Charlie Guenter and Heidi Katherine Baartz. She attended the music lessons, recitals and summer camp sporting events for both Aaron and Alexandria. With the graduation of the twins from Shaker Heights High School, Marian saw their send-offs to college with Aaron going to Allegheny 2010 and Alexandria heading to Ohio State University 2011. Marian's final days at Mount St Joseph Nursing Home in Euclid, OH were quiet and peaceful. Surrounded by family, she died late in the afternoon on the sunny, spring day of April 27th 2010. The family prefers that those who wish may make contributions in her name to "Unrestricted Financial Aid, Wellesley College", 106 Central Street, Wellesley, Mass, 02481 or to the American Lung Association, 1950 Arlington Lane, Columbus, Ohio 43228. Memorial Services were held on May 1st in Christ Episcopal Church, 3445 Warrensville Center Road, Shaker Heights., Ohio. Interment was Lake View Cemetery.


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