Marjorie Farmer O'Keeffe

The Reverend James William Farmer. Marge, as friends called her, grew up in Georgia and carried love for that state throughout her life. She attended Bessie Tift College and graduated from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, in 1937. She played basketball and tennis in college and was a member of the Glee Club and Alpha Delta Pi sorority. Marge married John Graham O'Keeffe on June 14, 1941 and had four children, John, Jim, Bill, and Margie.

She loved learning and teaching others to learn. Under her leadership as President, the Association for Childhood Education ( A.C.E.) in Bluefield, West Virginia started the drive for the school for exceptional children. She served as the state Treasurer of the A.C.E. Marge taught high school Math in Georgia and West Virginia. She taught at Cary High School for seventeen years and was the heart as well as the head of the YRAC annual staff for many years. Marge was passionate about many things - family, friends, flowers, art, club work, sports, antiques, traveling, genealogy, meeting people and entertaining. The list could go on and on! She had the gift of hospitality and loved to give parties. Her life was full and varied - she even had an antique shop and her own radio show, "Shopping with Marge."

Her love of flowers led to over sixty years of club work. She was the first President of the Rhododendron Garden Club in Bluefield, West Virginia and President of both the Cary and Raleigh Garden Clubs, as well as District 10 Director. She was state Treasurer of the Garden Club of North Carolina and the J. C. Raulston Arboretum liaison for

many years. She promoted wildflower planting on the North Carolina highways and chaired the committee for the beautification of the North Carolina Visitor Centers.

Her love of art led her to paint, and she became the President of the Bluefield Art Club as well as a docent of the North Carolina Museum of Art for over two decades. Some of her fondest memories are trips she took with the docents. Her love of history and genealogy led her to become an active member and Regent of the Caswell-Nash Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was a member of the Johnston-Pettigrew Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy and a docent at the North Carolina Governor's Mansion.

Marge was a member of the Pro and Con Book Club, the Raleigh Woman's Club and many bridge clubs over the years. She loved sports, both as a participant and as a spectator. Her school spirit for Cary High School and North Carolina State University was equal to that of the most enthusiastic student. She was a member of Hayes Barton Baptist Church and belonged to the Modern Lydia Sunday School Class. Marge had a zest for life and said many times that "she loved every minute of it." She was active, passionate, involved, fun-loving, curious, enthusiastic, positive, loving and caring. She was a real Southern lady with a great personality, a keen mind, and many talents -

a true "Steel Magnolia." Marge was a sacrificial mother whose children "rise up and call her blessed."

She is survived by three of her children, John Graham O'Keeffe, Jr. (Linda Logan) of Raleigh, James Wharton O'Keeffe (Dawn Carson) of Pasadena, California, and Marjorie O'Keeffe Castleberry (Randall) of New Bern, North Carolina. She is also survived by grandchildren, Ashley Pettus (Ben); Liz O'Keeffe; Brian and Chris Castleberry; Kelsey, Sean, Molly and Will O'Keeffe; great-grandchildren: Maggie, Aliza and Nate Pettus; a sister, Barbara Kincheloe of Richmond, Virginia; a brother, Hoyt Farmer, of Melbourne, FL, and many special nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her husband John, son William Lathrop O'Keeffe, brothers Ike and Roy Farmer, and sisters Jimelle Walker and Eunice Gillespie.

A memorial service celebrating Marge's life will be held at 2:00pm on Thursday, August 30, 2012 at Hayes Barton Baptist Church, Raleigh. A reception and visitation with the family will follow in the church Fellowship Hall. A private family burial will take place the following day at Maplewood Cemetery in Tazewell, Virginia.

The family would like to thank all of Marge's many friends for their wonderful love and support they showed her over the years. We would like to express our gratitude to Frances Howard, Shirley Lee, Sharon Sanders, and Mary Jo Wallace for their special care of our mother, and to The Homeplace of New Bern and the staff that took such good care of her. God bless you all!

In memory of Marge's love of flowers and all things beautiful, flowers are welcome; or Memorial contributions may be made to the North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, 4630 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-4630; the J. C. Raulston Arboretum at North Carolina

State University, P. O. Box 7522, Raleigh, NC 27695-7522; or United Hospice, 810 Kennedy Avenue, New Bern, North Carolina 28560.

Arrangements by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, St. Mary's Street, Raleigh.