Marjorie (Margie) J. Baum, loving wife, mother, sister, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away Monday, Nov. 23 at Westminster Village’s Martin Health Center in Bloomington, Ill. She was 92.
Margie was born to Palmer and Edna (Lehman) Moser on August 7, 1928. She and her siblings, Mary and Millard, grew up in Berne Ind. where her family owned and operated a Ford dealership. Proving that rivals do work well together, she married Richard (Dick) Baum on September 4, 1948, whose family owned and operated a Chevrolet dealership in Carlock, Illinois. The two, who were high school-aged sweethearts, met at Camp Mack, a Christian youth camp in Milford, Ind.
Following their marriage, Dick and Margie settled in Carlock. Moving to Clinton in 1964, the pair continued to build on a successful business, Baum Chevrolet Buick, and raised three children: Stephanie, Stephen and Scott.
Never one to sit idle when work needed to be done or people needed assistance, Margie worked in a doctor’s office following high school, raised her children, and attended Eureka College to become a certified teacher’s aide in reading which she used while working in the Clinton Community School District. Margie also served on the board of directors for the Vespasian Warner Public Library in Clinton and was a children’s Sunday school teacher at both the Mennonite Church of Carlock and Normal.
Gentle and graceful with a classic sense of style and steadfast integrity, Margie loved reading, writing, recording and reminiscing. In her spare time, she enjoyed traveling, chatting with friends and strangers alike, walking, baking and spending time with her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She especially loved genealogy, scrapbooking and letter writing, often gifting completed scrapbooks and sending friends and family handwritten notes – in exceptional penmanship – with old snapshots included in her handmade cards.
Margie’s husband, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren were a top priority and she spoke and showed her love often. She is survived by her husband, Dick; brothers, Millard (Janean) Moser, Kenyon (Mary) Sprunger and Ben (Sue) Sprunger; children, Stephanie (Mike) Company and Scott (Nancy) Baum; daughter-in-law, Rhonda (Chuck) Kern; grandchildren Joe (Carrie) Company, Jeff Company, Rachel (David) Torbert and Janell (Spencer) Thomas; and six great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Palmer and Edna (Lehman) Moser, stepmother Viola (Sprunger) Moser, sister Mary (Moser) Eicher, and son, Stephen Baum.
Due to the ongoing pandemic and current public health directives, a private memorial service for immediate family will be held 11 AM, Dec. 12, 2020 at Calvert Funeral Home in Clinton with David Moser and Ron Ropp officiating.
Given Margie’s dedication and love of service to people and causes important to her, her family asks that, in lieu of flowers, any memorial donations be made to Little Galilee Christian Camp, 7539 Little Galilee Road, Clinton, IL 61727; Camp Friedenswald, 15406 Watercress Way, Cassopolis, MI. 49031-9532; and Mennonite Central Committee, 21 S. 12th Street, PO Box 500, Akron, PA 17501-0500.
