Marjorie Ruth Wheelock

Marjorie Ruth Wheelock, a well-known longtime Boulder resident, passed away peacefully at home on May 19th, 2024 with her daughter Eva by her side. She was 96 years young, a devoted wife, loving mother and grandmother, active church member, community activist, volunteer whom always raised her hand, and a devoted servant of God. Everyone knew her for abundant generosity, gentle kindness and a great sense of humor.

She was born in April 1928 on a farm near Delaware, OK, the daughter of Solomon and Eva Miller Newcomb. Known as Marge, her Native American name was “she who flies with birds”. When she was a child, she dreamt of being a bird and flying high above the heads of her family. They would implore her “come down from there Margie!”

The year Marge was born marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. Beginning in the mid-1930s, a severe drought called The Dust Bowl ravaged the agricultural heartland of Oklahoma. Marge remembered walking hand in hand with her sister Lena as blowing dust turned day into night. Although it would take Oklahoma a long time to heal from the myriad scars that the Depression left behind, Marge never spoke badly about the experience and instead remembered her family, aunts, uncles and cousins with legendary stories and fondness.

She was a member of the Delaware tribe whom called themselves the Lenape “the original people”. Long before Marge was born, the Lenape homeland was situated within what are today the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, and Delaware. The term Delaware is not of indigenous origin, but actually derives from the title given to Sir Thomas West, the twelfth Lord de la Warr, who was appointed the English governor of Virginia in 1610.

By the eve of the American Revolution, most Delaware groups were living along the Ohio and Allegheny rivers. The pro-British Delaware groups were living in what is today the northwestern portion of Ohio, and pro-American Delaware groups were settled near the frontier city of Pittsburgh. Despite the mixed alliance, the Delaware were largely treated as defeated British allies at the close of the war and migrated west in order to escape American retaliation.

Delaware military action against the United States ultimately ended when the Americans defeated the intertribal confederacy that included Delaware, Shawnee, and other woodland Indian forces at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1795. Following the Civil War, white encroachment and railroad speculation increased, and the Delaware were pressured to cede their lands in Kansas and relocate to Indian Territory, now modern day Oklahoma where Marge was born in 1928.

Marjorie was educated at the Delaware school and later attended Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, KS, obtaining a business degree. She wore the number 26 on her basketball team jersey and won an award for short-hand transcription. She went to work as an Executive Assistant for the Phillips Petroleum Company in Bartlesville, OK, where she met her husband of forty-nine years, Dr. Charles (Charlie) E. Wheelock, after a chance substitution at the company bowling league.

Marge was very proud of her Lenape (Delaware) heritage and her Christian faith. She served on the Delaware Tribe of Indians Business Committee, and through the national Presbyterian Synod, put a lot of her love into many committees addressing Native American and Racial/ Ethnic Ministry needs. She served on the Native American Educational Grants Committee, a group that evaluates grant proposals to assist Native Americans who desire to go into ministry and allocated funds for tutoring students at Dubuque Seminary and Charles Cook Theological School. She was the moderator of the Native American Consulting Committee and traveled internationally to help indigenous ministries around the world. “I have learned so much” she said with enthusiasm, “Native Americans are spiritual people, and participating in traditional ways gives you a connectedness to your past.” An ordained Elder at First Presbyterian Church, she served in Christian Education and Congregational Life, taught Sunday school with the legendary Boulderite Suzi Plooster, and was a trained lay counselor. She was active in many church groups including the Mariners, Silver Threads, Over 80, and organized the Lunch Bunch. She was integral in the Quilt Project as part of the Sesquicentennial (150 year) celebration in Boulder. Marge was a Fairview High School Band Mom, repairing and cleaning band uniforms and keeping kids out of trouble as a chaperone. She gave many talks to schools and community groups on her culture and amazing life. In her spare time, she served many years as an Election judge, danced with husband Charlie at the Promenaders, and acted as Volunteer Coordinator for Meals on Wheels.

Every day, Marjorie read the bible and Guideposts inspirations at her desk, especially dedicated to devotional study. She wrote Old and New Testament bible verses on various scraps of paper and tucked them everywhere in random places. She welcomed many guests including college friends and parents as they journeyed through Boulder. She opened her door to Jehovah’s Witnesses, Buddhists and Mormon missionaries, serving them refreshments and gently sharing her faith. She made Christmas stockings for Jewish friends who were like family to her. She was an excellent cook and provided great meals for her family. Ironically, when she returned to work after her children were in high school, her husband Charlie assumed the role of cook very badly, which added to the family’s humorous lore.

Marge loved colorful Colorado and the outdoors. The family spent many nights camping in Moraine Park. She somehow packed everything into the family station wagon and scrambled the best-tasting breakfast eggs on an old green Coleman stove. She and Charlie’s favorite hikes were in the often overlooked Wild Basin and Ouzel Falls trail.

She was preceded in death by her parents Solomon and Eva, brothers Bud and Coke, sisters Lena and Barbara, and beloved husband Charlie. She is remembered fondly by her daughter Eva; three sons Chuck, Steve and John; Chuck’s wife Deb, and her two grandsons Henry and George. She also leaves behind a wake of friends and admirers at the Bramford, which served beautifully as her home and community for nearly thirty years. She will be greatly missed and forever remembered.

A service will be held at Grace Commons Church in Boulder on Sunday June 9th, 2024 at 2:00pm. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Tru Hospice Community Care https://fundraise.givesmart.com/form/njCXCA?vid=15sefe

Read the epic Boulder Weekly article on her life: https://boulderweekly.com/news/so-the-story-goes/