Marlene was preceded in death by her parents, Leo Raymond Mahaffey and Lillian Rebecca (Lind) Mahaffey, and a niece, Tami Kay (McGill) Lowe.
She is survived by two sisters, Cheryl (Carl) Zuidema of Holt and Linda (John) McGill of Alpena; three nieces; a great niece; and two great nephews.
Marlene has been sent for cremation. Burial and a graveside service will be held in the spring.
The family wishes to thank the staff at CEICMHS, Alternative Services Inc, and more recently, Central State Community Services, for their many years of tender loving care of Marlene. The family would also like to thank the caring staff of Great Lakes Caring Hospice for their loving services.
Always a Child
Marlene was a child born with severe mental impairment. She did not learn easily, if at all, if you measured her by the world’s measuring stick. What she did know was the infinite joy in the simple things. She was not burdened as we are with the strife and conflicts of a more complicated life.
Marlene’s gift to us was to grant us the freedom to enjoy things as a child, to teach us how much our arms around her meant, and to give us unconditional love. She gave us the gift of simplicity. She was an adult, always a child, who was severely mentally impaired, who by the world’s standards was a disabled child. She was our teacher as we allowed her. She taught us what is really important in life. She gave us and taught us unconditional love. Marlene gifted us with innocent trust.
Marlene’s dependency on others taught us how precious this life is and about not taking things for granted. She taught us about forgetting our own needs and about giving, but most of all about hope and faith.
Marlene was forever a child mentally, an angel unaware. She spread her wings and returned home January 18, 2019.
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