Marquita Clymer Duncan

Markie, as she was known to all, passed away on August 21, 2021, from natural causes at the age of 94. She was born in New York City on March 21, 1927, to Ray March Merrill and Lula Blanche Sadler Merrill. She married Major Harvey Claude Clymer (USAF) on May 10, 1952, in Washington, D.C. He predeceased her in 1994. She later married William Lloyd Duncan, a widower whom she met in a grief counseling group at The Christi Center after good friends Susan and Don Cox urged her to go. Markie and Bill wed on June 22, 1997, and were married nearly 20 years before his death in 2017.

She was a joyful person who loved people. She had a lifelong interest in singing and art; she both painted and sculpted. She loved group activities like the Retired Officers’ Wives Club and the Welcome to Austin Club. She showered attention on her grandchildren when they were younger, and then on her great-grandchildren when they came along. She especially loved traveling in the latter part of her life; she and Bill traveled the world and had thousands of photos to prove it. Cruises were favored because she was able to befriend others, who then became recipients of the famous Markie’s Christmas Letter. When she and Bill moved into Assisted Living and could no longer travel, she shared stories of her life with the family that gave insight to the family history. She also considered her caregivers at Brookdale Gaines Ranch as personal friends, interested in their families and ALWAYS singing their praises to her children. These last two years Markie relied on the company and personal care of Daphne Frizzell, who treated her like family.

Markie is survived by her daughter Jeanine Eloise Clymer Brim and husband Jay, her son Christopher Merrill Clymer, grandchildren Cari Christen Brim Land and husband David, Brandon Young Brim and wife Rebecca, Jessica Merrill Brim Schumacher and husband Richard, and by six great grandchildren, Jack and Owen Land, Merrill and Emma Schumacher, and Isla and Enid Brim.

A Memorial Service celebrating her life will be held on September 26 at 2:00 p.m. at Westlake United Methodist Church, to which all are invited. This service will be livestreamed at:

https://livestream.com/westlakeumc/marquitamemorial

The family invites donations in her memory to The Christi Center, or to the Multiple Sclerosis Society.