Marilyn Tranbarger

was 96 years of age. She is survived by her husband of 75 years Glen, her son David, daughter Jane

and daughter-in-law Karen Reed, all of Sarasota. She is also mourned by her brother Thomas and

sister-in law Ginger (Stankey) Sowash, as well as many nephews, nieces and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her parents Harold and Martha (Vanness) Sowash, as well as grandson

Andrew Tranbarger. Also fondly remembered are father-in-law Orville Tranbarger, mother-in-law

Dorothy (Brown) Tranbarger, brothers-in-law Wilbur Tranbarger and Paul Tranbarger, sister-in-law

Phyllis (Hunt) Tranbarger and nephew Donald Jay Tranbarger.

Marilyn was born in Anderson, Indiana, on April 3, 1929. Despite the Great Depression and a World

War, she enjoyed a happy childhood and graduated from Anderson High School in 1947. It was there

that she met the love of her life, Glen. They were married August 7, 1949 and recently celebrated their

75th wedding anniversary with many friends and family in attendance. Their first home together was a

cozy house in Anderson’s Meadowbrook neighborhood. Glen was employed as a draftsman and

engineer by Delco-Remy divison of General Motors. When Glen was called to Army service in 1952,

Marilyn followed him to Ft. Riley, Kansas where Glen taught basic auto mechanics to troops headed

overseas. Prior to her marriage, Marilyn worked as a typist for Delco-Remy.

Following Glen’s military service, the couple returned to Anderson and after a few years built a house

on ten acres in the countryside where they lived happily for the next 57 years, raising two children,

David and Jane. Glen retired from Delco-Remy in 1986, after which they spent many winters

snowbirding with Glen’s brother Paul and Paul’s wife Phyllis, who had been Marilyn’s best friend since

childhood. The four soon decided that Sarasota, Florida was the place to be. Glen and Paul flew kites

on Siesta Beach while Marilyn and Phyllis enjoyed tropical relaxation. Glen and Marilyn moved to

Sarasota permanently in 2014.

Marilyn enjoyed taking care of her family. She was the first to rise in the morning and the last to go to

bed at night. She enjoyed family get-togethers, reading and traveling. One of her greatest joys was her

grandson Andy. In her later years, she loved to look through her many accumulated albums of

photographs. She was a member of Fifth Street United Methodist Church in Anderson and Trinity

United Methodist Church in Sarasota.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association (alz.org), 225 N. Michigan Ave.

Floor 17, Chicago, IL 60601. Telephone 1-800-272-3900.