Marian Jane (Kramer) Ayers

Born on June 6th, 1930 to Herbert and Anna Kramer on ranch land homesteaded by her grandfather in what is now farm country between Delano and Earlimart in Kern County. The Kramer family was one of the early pioneer families that developed the farm country in the Delano and Earlimart area. Marian was the oldest of three siblings with two brothers, Herbert (Ken) and Richard (Dick).

Growing up on the family ranch during the Great Depression and WWII, Marian graduated from Delano High School in 1948. She was active in many areas in school and acted in several school plays. Following graduation she attended the College of Sequoias in Visalia to pursue her Associates of Arts Degree. While attending school at C.O.S. she met her future husband, Glenn Ayers. After graduating in 1950 she moved to Fresno to pursue her Bachelor of Arts degree in education. During her time at Fresno State University Marian was active in the Beta Sigma Phi sorority. Marian graduated in the spring of 1952.

Marian married Glenn in the summer of 1952 and moved to Hanford, Glenn’s home town. While living out of a duplex on Porter St., Marian accepted her first teaching job at Kit Carson Union Elementary as a probationary employee for a whopping sum of $288.33 a month. Marian moved on to teaching second grade at Lee Richmond Elementary.

After the birth of her second son 1955, Marian paused her teaching career to raise a family. Marian raised 3 children, David and Donald, both from Hanford and Diane of Sacramento. Marian took great pride in her children who all went on to be successful in their own right.

In 1967 Marian resumed teaching in the Hanford Adult School system teaching primarily English as a Second Language (ESL) to newcomers in the community. Following her divorce from Glenn in 1978, Marian continued her teaching career. Over the years her students were comprised of 95% of the world’s non-English speaking countries, and have included an Olympic swimmer from Peru and a medical doctor from Japan. She served as a key member of ESL/ABE (Adult Basic Education) for the Hanford Adult School and as a member of the Department of Education’s Adult Basic Education review committee. Following nearly 3 decades of service, Marian retired from teaching in 1995 to great accolades including a Legislative Resolution from State Senator Jim Costa. She took great pride in seeing the successes of her many former students in the community and she felt their appreciation of her contributions to their success.

After her retirement, Marian continued to be active in the community and remained connected to her many sorority sisters state wide. She was active in the Kings County Singles for many years including a stint as its president. Later she was an active member of the Kings County Seniors. Marian also loved to travel and traveled frequently. This included trips to Hawaii with her mother as well as trips to Norway, Alaska, Australia, New Zealand, South America and many locations in the U.S.

Marian was preceded in death by her two brothers, Herbert “Ken” Kramer of Visalia and Richard “Dick” Kramer of Bakersfield. She is survived by her three children, David G Ayers (Julie) of Hanford, Donald A Ayers (Joann) of Hanford and Diane D Ayers of Sacramento. She is also survived by her grandchildren, Sean Ayers of Hanford, Colin Ayers of Goleta, Patricia Zeafla of Hanford and Earl Moore of Visalia as well as many nieces, nephews and great-grandchildren.

Marian will be interred with her parents at the North Kern Cemetery District in Delano.

Reception to be held following the service to share memories of Marian.