Marcia Miller Blair, 70, of Rushville, passed away May 5, 2010 at St. Vincent's Hospital in Indianapolis.
Born June 16, 1939 in Crawfordsville, she was the daughter of J. Noble and Mildred Goff Miller, both deceased. Mrs. Blair graduated from Crawfordsville High School in 1957.
She attended Butler University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1961. While at Butler, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority, Beta Sigma Phi journalism honorary, and was president of Mortar Board, a senior women's honorary. She also was a member of Butler 's national qualifier debate team in 1956 and was the National Collegiate Extemporaneous Speech Champion in 1957. She went on to earn her Master of Arts degree in speech and language arts from Ball State University. It was at Butler where she met her husband, Les Blair, who survives her. They celebrated their 48th wedding anniversary April 29.
Together with Les, Marcia called Rushville home for nearly 47 years. A local educator for nearly 40 years, she sponsored everything from the Rushlite school newspaper and Holcad school yearbook to powder puff football and the academic team. Along the way, she managed to direct 67 high school plays. Her talents and call to service went well beyond teaching. She founded Slabtown Players, a summer drama group featuring high school students, which ran from 1967 to 1989. Hundreds of Rush County kids performed to thousands of theater-goers who enjoyed her original one-act skits and musical numbers. She continued writing for the next generation Briar Patch Players, and was even scheduled to write for The Players this summer.
She was a champion of Rushville and Rush County, serving on several civic and philanthropic boards. She was a long-time executive director and board member of the Rush County United Fund; board member, secretary, and president of the Rush County Chamber of Commerce; and, served on the boards of Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation and Rushville City Parks. She was active in Tri Kappa social sorority and Main Street Christian Church, where she served as one of the first women elders, was active in CWF, a member of the church board, and was to be the incoming board president.
She received many honors and recognitions, including Rushville BPW Woman of the Year, Rushville Republican Teacher of the Year, and Rush County Players Trouper of the Year.
Survivors in addition to her husband include sons, Patrick (Julie) Blair of Alexandria, Ky. and Michael (Jennifer) Blair of Indianapolis; daughter, Katie (Chris) Burkhardt of Rushville; grandchildren, Max, Christian, and Gabi Blair; and sister-in-law and long-time special friend, Dixie Blair Browning of Indianapolis.
Services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Main Street Christian Church in Rushville with Pastor Sam Davenport presiding, followed by a lunch reception.
Cremation will follow.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at the church.
Arrangements by Moster Mortuary in Rushville.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Main Street Christian Church or the Marcia and Les Blair Rush County Community Foundation Scholarship.
**********************************
Rushville Republican (Editor's note: The following was written by Marcia Blair in March 2008. We thank her family for sharing it with us.)
Marcia L. Blair, 70, an enthusiastic Rush County school teacher for many years, died May 5, 2010.
In April 1962, she married Les Blair.
They settled in Rush County in 1963. She always hoped her 40+ years here would qualify her as a native since all her roots were lovingly transplanted here.
Mart began her teaching career at Raleigh Elementary School teaching fourth grade and retired from the Rush County School system in 2001 after 37 years of teaching elementary, drama, speech, English, and journalism at RCHS. She loved everything about theatre and was proud to have directed 67 high school plays and several civic and church productions.
She hoped to be remembered for her sense of humor and was a local skit writer by choice. She always thought she was funnier than did others. Her skill with embellishment was second-to-none.
She was graduated from Butler University and had a Masters degree from Ball State. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority. She was a member, elder, and board member of Main Street Christian Church and served as executive director of the Rush County United Fund for many years.
Mart was the writer/director of the Slabtown Players, a summer drama group of high school students, from 1967 to 1989. In 1990, she was named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Gov. Evan Bayh. She worked actively and enthusiastically for the Rush County Chamber of Commerce, the Rush County United Fund, the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation, and less actively but enthusiastically for the Old Gents Literary Society and the associate chapter of Kappa Kappa Kappa.
Mart would have loved contributions made in her name to the Main Street Christian Church or the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation.
************************************
Marcia Blair posthumously named Citizen of the Year.
Former RCHS teacher Al Hodge, the 2009 Rush County Citizen of the Year recipient, talked of the decision to nominate Marcia Blair as this year's Citizen of the Year. He spoke about Blair and her many years of commitment to the community, from her years of teaching first in Raleigh and then at RCHS.
He also talked about Blair's contributions to the theater program at the local high school and her involvement in the decision to build the Laughlin Center addition. Also noted were her years as writer for the Slabtown Players, community plays and her service as a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Christian Church and other community organizations.
"I and others feel this award is long overdue. When we nominated Marcia (Blair) we had no idea that health issues would take her away," Hodge said. According to Hodge, Blair's foresight and efforts set her apart from others and he and others felt privileged to nominate her as the 2010 Rush County Citizen of the Year. Marcia's husband of 48 years, Les Blair, and family members accepted the award posthumously on Marcia Blair's behalf.
Born June 16, 1939 in Crawfordsville, she was the daughter of J. Noble and Mildred Goff Miller, both deceased. Mrs. Blair graduated from Crawfordsville High School in 1957.
She attended Butler University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1961. While at Butler, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority, Beta Sigma Phi journalism honorary, and was president of Mortar Board, a senior women's honorary. She also was a member of Butler 's national qualifier debate team in 1956 and was the National Collegiate Extemporaneous Speech Champion in 1957. She went on to earn her Master of Arts degree in speech and language arts from Ball State University. It was at Butler where she met her husband, Les Blair, who survives her. They celebrated their 48th wedding anniversary April 29.
Together with Les, Marcia called Rushville home for nearly 47 years. A local educator for nearly 40 years, she sponsored everything from the Rushlite school newspaper and Holcad school yearbook to powder puff football and the academic team. Along the way, she managed to direct 67 high school plays. Her talents and call to service went well beyond teaching. She founded Slabtown Players, a summer drama group featuring high school students, which ran from 1967 to 1989. Hundreds of Rush County kids performed to thousands of theater-goers who enjoyed her original one-act skits and musical numbers. She continued writing for the next generation Briar Patch Players, and was even scheduled to write for The Players this summer.
She was a champion of Rushville and Rush County, serving on several civic and philanthropic boards. She was a long-time executive director and board member of the Rush County United Fund; board member, secretary, and president of the Rush County Chamber of Commerce; and, served on the boards of Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation and Rushville City Parks. She was active in Tri Kappa social sorority and Main Street Christian Church, where she served as one of the first women elders, was active in CWF, a member of the church board, and was to be the incoming board president.
She received many honors and recognitions, including Rushville BPW Woman of the Year, Rushville Republican Teacher of the Year, and Rush County Players Trouper of the Year.
Survivors in addition to her husband include sons, Patrick (Julie) Blair of Alexandria, Ky. and Michael (Jennifer) Blair of Indianapolis; daughter, Katie (Chris) Burkhardt of Rushville; grandchildren, Max, Christian, and Gabi Blair; and sister-in-law and long-time special friend, Dixie Blair Browning of Indianapolis.
Services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Main Street Christian Church in Rushville with Pastor Sam Davenport presiding, followed by a lunch reception.
Cremation will follow.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at the church.
Arrangements by Moster Mortuary in Rushville.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Main Street Christian Church or the Marcia and Les Blair Rush County Community Foundation Scholarship.
**********************************
Rushville Republican (Editor's note: The following was written by Marcia Blair in March 2008. We thank her family for sharing it with us.)
Marcia L. Blair, 70, an enthusiastic Rush County school teacher for many years, died May 5, 2010.
In April 1962, she married Les Blair.
They settled in Rush County in 1963. She always hoped her 40+ years here would qualify her as a native since all her roots were lovingly transplanted here.
Mart began her teaching career at Raleigh Elementary School teaching fourth grade and retired from the Rush County School system in 2001 after 37 years of teaching elementary, drama, speech, English, and journalism at RCHS. She loved everything about theatre and was proud to have directed 67 high school plays and several civic and church productions.
She hoped to be remembered for her sense of humor and was a local skit writer by choice. She always thought she was funnier than did others. Her skill with embellishment was second-to-none.
She was graduated from Butler University and had a Masters degree from Ball State. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority. She was a member, elder, and board member of Main Street Christian Church and served as executive director of the Rush County United Fund for many years.
Mart was the writer/director of the Slabtown Players, a summer drama group of high school students, from 1967 to 1989. In 1990, she was named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Gov. Evan Bayh. She worked actively and enthusiastically for the Rush County Chamber of Commerce, the Rush County United Fund, the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation, and less actively but enthusiastically for the Old Gents Literary Society and the associate chapter of Kappa Kappa Kappa.
Mart would have loved contributions made in her name to the Main Street Christian Church or the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation.
************************************
Marcia Blair posthumously named Citizen of the Year.
Former RCHS teacher Al Hodge, the 2009 Rush County Citizen of the Year recipient, talked of the decision to nominate Marcia Blair as this year's Citizen of the Year. He spoke about Blair and her many years of commitment to the community, from her years of teaching first in Raleigh and then at RCHS.
He also talked about Blair's contributions to the theater program at the local high school and her involvement in the decision to build the Laughlin Center addition. Also noted were her years as writer for the Slabtown Players, community plays and her service as a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Christian Church and other community organizations.
"I and others feel this award is long overdue. When we nominated Marcia (Blair) we had no idea that health issues would take her away," Hodge said. According to Hodge, Blair's foresight and efforts set her apart from others and he and others felt privileged to nominate her as the 2010 Rush County Citizen of the Year. Marcia's husband of 48 years, Les Blair, and family members accepted the award posthumously on Marcia Blair's behalf.
Marcia Miller Blair, 70, of Rushville, passed away May 5, 2010 at St. Vincent's Hospital in Indianapolis.
Born June 16, 1939 in Crawfordsville, she was the daughter of J. Noble and Mildred Goff Miller, both deceased. Mrs. Blair graduated from Crawfordsville High School in 1957.
She attended Butler University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1961. While at Butler, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority, Beta Sigma Phi journalism honorary, and was president of Mortar Board, a senior women's honorary. She also was a member of Butler 's national qualifier debate team in 1956 and was the National Collegiate Extemporaneous Speech Champion in 1957. She went on to earn her Master of Arts degree in speech and language arts from Ball State University. It was at Butler where she met her husband, Les Blair, who survives her. They celebrated their 48th wedding anniversary April 29.
Together with Les, Marcia called Rushville home for nearly 47 years. A local educator for nearly 40 years, she sponsored everything from the Rushlite school newspaper and Holcad school yearbook to powder puff football and the academic team. Along the way, she managed to direct 67 high school plays. Her talents and call to service went well beyond teaching. She founded Slabtown Players, a summer drama group featuring high school students, which ran from 1967 to 1989. Hundreds of Rush County kids performed to thousands of theater-goers who enjoyed her original one-act skits and musical numbers. She continued writing for the next generation Briar Patch Players, and was even scheduled to write for The Players this summer.
She was a champion of Rushville and Rush County, serving on several civic and philanthropic boards. She was a long-time executive director and board member of the Rush County United Fund; board member, secretary, and president of the Rush County Chamber of Commerce; and, served on the boards of Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation and Rushville City Parks. She was active in Tri Kappa social sorority and Main Street Christian Church, where she served as one of the first women elders, was active in CWF, a member of the church board, and was to be the incoming board president.
She received many honors and recognitions, including Rushville BPW Woman of the Year, Rushville Republican Teacher of the Year, and Rush County Players Trouper of the Year.
Survivors in addition to her husband include sons, Patrick (Julie) Blair of Alexandria, Ky. and Michael (Jennifer) Blair of Indianapolis; daughter, Katie (Chris) Burkhardt of Rushville; grandchildren, Max, Christian, and Gabi Blair; and sister-in-law and long-time special friend, Dixie Blair Browning of Indianapolis.
Services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Main Street Christian Church in Rushville with Pastor Sam Davenport presiding, followed by a lunch reception.
Cremation will follow.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at the church.
Arrangements by Moster Mortuary in Rushville.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Main Street Christian Church or the Marcia and Les Blair Rush County Community Foundation Scholarship.
**********************************
Rushville Republican (Editor's note: The following was written by Marcia Blair in March 2008. We thank her family for sharing it with us.)
Marcia L. Blair, 70, an enthusiastic Rush County school teacher for many years, died May 5, 2010.
In April 1962, she married Les Blair.
They settled in Rush County in 1963. She always hoped her 40+ years here would qualify her as a native since all her roots were lovingly transplanted here.
Mart began her teaching career at Raleigh Elementary School teaching fourth grade and retired from the Rush County School system in 2001 after 37 years of teaching elementary, drama, speech, English, and journalism at RCHS. She loved everything about theatre and was proud to have directed 67 high school plays and several civic and church productions.
She hoped to be remembered for her sense of humor and was a local skit writer by choice. She always thought she was funnier than did others. Her skill with embellishment was second-to-none.
She was graduated from Butler University and had a Masters degree from Ball State. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority. She was a member, elder, and board member of Main Street Christian Church and served as executive director of the Rush County United Fund for many years.
Mart was the writer/director of the Slabtown Players, a summer drama group of high school students, from 1967 to 1989. In 1990, she was named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Gov. Evan Bayh. She worked actively and enthusiastically for the Rush County Chamber of Commerce, the Rush County United Fund, the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation, and less actively but enthusiastically for the Old Gents Literary Society and the associate chapter of Kappa Kappa Kappa.
Mart would have loved contributions made in her name to the Main Street Christian Church or the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation.
************************************
Marcia Blair posthumously named Citizen of the Year.
Former RCHS teacher Al Hodge, the 2009 Rush County Citizen of the Year recipient, talked of the decision to nominate Marcia Blair as this year's Citizen of the Year. He spoke about Blair and her many years of commitment to the community, from her years of teaching first in Raleigh and then at RCHS.
He also talked about Blair's contributions to the theater program at the local high school and her involvement in the decision to build the Laughlin Center addition. Also noted were her years as writer for the Slabtown Players, community plays and her service as a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Christian Church and other community organizations.
"I and others feel this award is long overdue. When we nominated Marcia (Blair) we had no idea that health issues would take her away," Hodge said. According to Hodge, Blair's foresight and efforts set her apart from others and he and others felt privileged to nominate her as the 2010 Rush County Citizen of the Year. Marcia's husband of 48 years, Les Blair, and family members accepted the award posthumously on Marcia Blair's behalf.
Born June 16, 1939 in Crawfordsville, she was the daughter of J. Noble and Mildred Goff Miller, both deceased. Mrs. Blair graduated from Crawfordsville High School in 1957.
She attended Butler University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1961. While at Butler, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority, Beta Sigma Phi journalism honorary, and was president of Mortar Board, a senior women's honorary. She also was a member of Butler 's national qualifier debate team in 1956 and was the National Collegiate Extemporaneous Speech Champion in 1957. She went on to earn her Master of Arts degree in speech and language arts from Ball State University. It was at Butler where she met her husband, Les Blair, who survives her. They celebrated their 48th wedding anniversary April 29.
Together with Les, Marcia called Rushville home for nearly 47 years. A local educator for nearly 40 years, she sponsored everything from the Rushlite school newspaper and Holcad school yearbook to powder puff football and the academic team. Along the way, she managed to direct 67 high school plays. Her talents and call to service went well beyond teaching. She founded Slabtown Players, a summer drama group featuring high school students, which ran from 1967 to 1989. Hundreds of Rush County kids performed to thousands of theater-goers who enjoyed her original one-act skits and musical numbers. She continued writing for the next generation Briar Patch Players, and was even scheduled to write for The Players this summer.
She was a champion of Rushville and Rush County, serving on several civic and philanthropic boards. She was a long-time executive director and board member of the Rush County United Fund; board member, secretary, and president of the Rush County Chamber of Commerce; and, served on the boards of Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation and Rushville City Parks. She was active in Tri Kappa social sorority and Main Street Christian Church, where she served as one of the first women elders, was active in CWF, a member of the church board, and was to be the incoming board president.
She received many honors and recognitions, including Rushville BPW Woman of the Year, Rushville Republican Teacher of the Year, and Rush County Players Trouper of the Year.
Survivors in addition to her husband include sons, Patrick (Julie) Blair of Alexandria, Ky. and Michael (Jennifer) Blair of Indianapolis; daughter, Katie (Chris) Burkhardt of Rushville; grandchildren, Max, Christian, and Gabi Blair; and sister-in-law and long-time special friend, Dixie Blair Browning of Indianapolis.
Services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Main Street Christian Church in Rushville with Pastor Sam Davenport presiding, followed by a lunch reception.
Cremation will follow.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at the church.
Arrangements by Moster Mortuary in Rushville.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Main Street Christian Church or the Marcia and Les Blair Rush County Community Foundation Scholarship.
**********************************
Rushville Republican (Editor's note: The following was written by Marcia Blair in March 2008. We thank her family for sharing it with us.)
Marcia L. Blair, 70, an enthusiastic Rush County school teacher for many years, died May 5, 2010.
In April 1962, she married Les Blair.
They settled in Rush County in 1963. She always hoped her 40+ years here would qualify her as a native since all her roots were lovingly transplanted here.
Mart began her teaching career at Raleigh Elementary School teaching fourth grade and retired from the Rush County School system in 2001 after 37 years of teaching elementary, drama, speech, English, and journalism at RCHS. She loved everything about theatre and was proud to have directed 67 high school plays and several civic and church productions.
She hoped to be remembered for her sense of humor and was a local skit writer by choice. She always thought she was funnier than did others. Her skill with embellishment was second-to-none.
She was graduated from Butler University and had a Masters degree from Ball State. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority. She was a member, elder, and board member of Main Street Christian Church and served as executive director of the Rush County United Fund for many years.
Mart was the writer/director of the Slabtown Players, a summer drama group of high school students, from 1967 to 1989. In 1990, she was named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Gov. Evan Bayh. She worked actively and enthusiastically for the Rush County Chamber of Commerce, the Rush County United Fund, the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation, and less actively but enthusiastically for the Old Gents Literary Society and the associate chapter of Kappa Kappa Kappa.
Mart would have loved contributions made in her name to the Main Street Christian Church or the Rush Memorial Hospital Foundation.
************************************
Marcia Blair posthumously named Citizen of the Year.
Former RCHS teacher Al Hodge, the 2009 Rush County Citizen of the Year recipient, talked of the decision to nominate Marcia Blair as this year's Citizen of the Year. He spoke about Blair and her many years of commitment to the community, from her years of teaching first in Raleigh and then at RCHS.
He also talked about Blair's contributions to the theater program at the local high school and her involvement in the decision to build the Laughlin Center addition. Also noted were her years as writer for the Slabtown Players, community plays and her service as a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Christian Church and other community organizations.
"I and others feel this award is long overdue. When we nominated Marcia (Blair) we had no idea that health issues would take her away," Hodge said. According to Hodge, Blair's foresight and efforts set her apart from others and he and others felt privileged to nominate her as the 2010 Rush County Citizen of the Year. Marcia's husband of 48 years, Les Blair, and family members accepted the award posthumously on Marcia Blair's behalf.
