Dr. Marcia Lee Agee

Marcia was an exceptional woman who touched the lives of countless others. She is survived by her loving family: daughters, Laura and Nicole Scheiber; daughter-in-law Courtney, grandchildren Anna, Sophie, Abby, and Gabriel; four siblings and their spouses (John and Catherine Agee, Mary Jo and Peter Clasen, James Agee, and Janet and Joseph Dougherty); and many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her parents Howard Lee Agee and Lorraine (Barrows) Agee. She was a proud godmother to her sister Janet, her nephew Benjamin Clasen, and her niece Rebecca (Dougherty) Truhler. She was also especially close to her grandmother Helen (Greeninger) Barrows.

Marcia was born in Minneapolis on June 5, 1945, while her father was serving overseas in the U.S. Navy. She was the oldest of five children. Although she lived all across the state, St. Paul was her heart and home. She attended Archbishop Murray Memorial High School and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from The College of Saint Catherine. She said that her greatest influence in life was the Catholic school nuns. She was particularly inspired by her former high school principal and later close friend, Sister Claire Lynch. She returned to school to earn a degree in Master of Business Administration from the University of Minnesota. At the encouragement of her mentors, she applied to the U of M PhD program and completed her doctorate in Business Administration at the age of 39 years old.

She was a faculty member in the Department of Management and Economics at Hamline University in St. Paul for over a decade. She served as a mentor to hundreds of students and student organizations. Marcia loved to travel. During a sabbatical, she taught at Boğaziçi University in Istanbul, Turkey. After retiring from teaching for health reasons, she created over a thousand unique braided wool rugs.

Marcia was a devout Catholic who believed in giving back to her community and helping those in need, especially women. She was trained as a childbirth educator, served on the executive board of the Minnesota Jaycee Women, and volunteered for the March of Dimes. Archbishop John Roach appointed her to be a member of the very first Commission on Women for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

She especially loved spending time at her cabin on Lake Superior. She spent hundreds of hours collecting rocks from the shore and making them into magnets. She gave these rocks to friends, family, medical providers, and even strangers. She told them to put the rocks on their refrigerators to remind them every day that one person with good intentions can make a difference by spreading peace to others. Thousands of these peace rocks in countless homes today remain visible reminders of Marcia’s wish for all of us.

Her family would like to thank the staff of Cerenity Senior Care Marian and HealthPartners Hospice team for taking such good care of Marcia, especially during her last weeks.

Celebration of Life on Tuesday, August 15 at Cerenity Marian, 200 Earl Street, St Paul, MN 55106: 10 am visitation, 11 am funeral Mass, and noon social. The burial will occur immediately afterward at Sunset Memorial Park Cemetery, 2250 St Anthony Blvd NE, Minneapolis, MN 55418. We invite guests to wear purple and/or a hat to the celebration. Remembrances can be sent to Cerenity Senior Care-Marian of St. Paul (https://cerenityseniorcare.org/give-a-gift/).

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.sunsetfuneralservices.com for the Agee family.