Marilyn Jane Salvatore was born the 20th of August, 1930 in Spokane, Washington to Ruby Dunn and Frank Roulst both of Black Diamond, Washington. Ruby was a post mistress, and Frank Roulst worked in the area’s coal mines. Frank immigrated from Belgium and Ruby’s family had immigrated from County Durham England.
Marilyn’s early life was not ideal. She spent much of her life in foster care. She lived in Spokane, later in California, and finally in Seattle. At 7 years of age, she met her maternal aunt and uncle Lillian and Al Andrews. They welcomed her into their home in Bremerton for a number of years. Marilyn would later say it was such a wonderful change in life style for her, it was as if she’d been plucked up and set down in heaven. For the first time, she had plentiful food from the garden on the property. She played the piano, swam in Phinney Bay, had friends over to her home and road a bike her doting uncle refurbished specifically for her.
Marilyn’s signature gifts in life were her resilience and intelligence. When she left Bremerton and struck out to create a life for herself in Seattle, she was determined to be the master of her own destiny. She landed a series of jobs and devoured everything there was to learn from each of them. She was a movie usherette in a downtown theater, an elevator operator in the Smith Tower, did clerical work for a bank, and worked as a receptionist for an interior design and custom drapery firm in Seattle. It was this job that became her entry to a lifelong career. During all of her lunch breaks, she would leave her desk in the front office and retire to the work room. She taught herself to operate the various power machines. Little by little, she acquired the skills to create beautiful specialty draperies, bedspreads, cornice boards, and Austrian shades. Her mastery of this skill and her innate artistic talent provided her years of employment with Frederick & Nelson where she did all their custom work and designed their annual Ideal Home. She also worked for the Bon Marche where she headed up their custom design shop. Later, she was able to launch a successful business in her home doing similar work.
By the time she turned sixteen, she met the man who would be the love of her life, James Salvatore. Jim had already returned from service in the US Army in the Pacific during World War II at only twenty years of age. They married two years later in Marilyn’s mother’s home on Summit Avenue in Seattle. Marilyn once shared that it was Jim’s basic decency, courtesy, and respect for women, combined with his big, loving Italian family that helped her to realize she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. The wedding also served as a reunification of Marilyn with her mother, Ruby.
Jim and Marilyn raised two daughters, Lynn Salvatore Macdonald and Michele Salvatore, and welcomed two granddaughters, Angela Macdonald and Jaymie Salvatore in the forty-five years they we were married. When he died in October of 1994, she met another challenging transition – She was losing her eyesight at the same time she became a widow. Marilyn met this challenge with the same characteristic resiliency that had marked her early life though. She immediately set about learning all about Access transportation, and she transitioned from spending her spare time on her hobbies of painting, doll making, and photography to ball room dancing – a pursuit she could enjoy long after her sight was gone. She travelled with friends: cruises to Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska, and an RV trek along the ALCAN highway into Alaska.
She danced and participated in the weddings of both her granddaughters and their husbands Jens Frisvold and Josh Crumb. She was over the moon to become a great-grandmother to Jaymie and Josh’s son Bennett and shortly afterwards to Angela and Jens’ daughter Lola.
By the time her 2rd and 3rd great-granddaughters, Delaney Crumb and Cleo Frisvold were born almost three years later, Marilyn was no longer able to participate in family life. Marilyn was bravely battling not just failed eyesight, but dementia, debilitating arthritis and a broken hip. She was missed terribly at family gatherings, and she could no longer enjoy those frequent outings for lunch and shopping or for hair cuts and manicures with her surviving daughter, Lynn. But in this sadness, there were also blessings. Marilyn was blessed with never learning of her younger daughter, Michele’s, premature death in 2014.
Marilyn was cared for by loving and caring professionals during her long illness. She received not just necessary medical treatment, but love and affection. Marilyn’s family is especially grateful to the dedicated staff of Hearthside Manor and Franciscan Hospice for the help they gave at the end of Marilyn’s inspiring journey.
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