Marie Waddell (105) of Effingham

Marie Frances Waddell, 105, of Effingham, Illinois, (formerly of St. Elmo, Illinois and Antioch, California) passed into Heaven at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, November 27, 2020, at Willowbrook of Effingham.

There will be no local services. Arrangements are in the care of Johnson Funeral Home in Effingham, Illinois. Entombment will be in Oak View Memorial Park in Antioch, California.

In loving memory and honor of Marie, memorials may be made to First Christian Church, 901 N. Henrietta, Effingham, Illinois 62401. Online condolences may be shared by clicking here.

Marie was born on October 24, 1915, in Seminary Township, Vandalia, Illinois, the daughter of Fred R. Crumbaugh Sr. and Ida M. (Moschenross) Crumbaugh. She was the first child of three children. Marie graduated from St. Elmo High in 1933. On August 24, 1934, Marie married Floyd R. Waddell. After 68 years of marriage, he preceded her in death on January 7, 2003, at the age 89.

Marie‘s first employment during high school was at Jake Katz Dry-Goods Store in St. Elmo as a bookkeeper. Her next position was a bank teller at St. Elmo Fayette County Bank. At the onset of WWII on the Salt Flats of Utah, Marie and her husband were employed by the Pacific Union Railroad. Marie was a dispatcher. Later in Klamath Falls, Oregon, Marie was appointed the first woman officer of the Bank of Portland. As a pastor’s wife in Pittsburg, California, Marie served 7 1/2 years as the pianist, elder, and recorder for the Church of All Faiths. After eighteen years as a secretary of investigations for the Antioch, California Police Department, Marie retired.

Through the years, Marie was given the honor of being a 50-year member of the Order of Eastern Star, White Shrine of Jerusalem, Daughters of the Nile, and the Order of the Amaranth. She was also a past guardian of Job’s Daughters International. In her later years, Marie was an officer and core leader for CBS (Community Bible Study) in Walnut Creek and Concord, California. Marie loved her faithful “Waddie” and enjoyed playing the piano and violin, reading books, working crossword puzzles, eating chocolate and nuts, and drinking Diet Coke.

Survivors to cherish Marie’s memory are niece, Audrine Hubbartt (Robert) of Mattoon; Helen Bennett (wife of nephew Gary L. Bennett, deceased) of Lexington, MO; and many other nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Marie was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Floyd; brother, F. Ross Crumbaugh Jr; sister, Ruby R. (Jack) Bennett; and nephew, Gary L. Bennett.