Margery M. Shipe

Margery M. Shipe, age 86 of 236 Forest Home Drive, passed away Friday evening, August 31, at the Alterra Sterling House in Ithaca.

Margery was born on May 18, 1921 in Corry, PA, a daughter of the late Harold and Edna Morris. She grew up in Olean, NY where she graduated as Valedictorian of her high school. She worked for the Olean Methodist Church as a regional conference coordinator, Sunday school teacher and secretary. Her summers were spent serving as camp counselor and program coordinator. In 1946, she and a childhood friend embarked on an extended cross country auto trek to California. Upon returning home, she accepted a position with the Wesley Foundation at Cornell University. In 1948 she married a young professor, W. Frank Shipe Jr., a food scientist at Cornell. She lived a fulfilled and happy life with her husband raising her two daughters along Fall Creek next to the Cornell Plantations. An avid reader, she imbued her children and grandchildren with intellectual curiosity and moral purpose. People walking through Forest Home have enjoyed her flower garden. She and Frank had become partners in a movement to reduce violence in our society by obeying the doctrine of The Golden Rule. Margery was an active member of her church, St.Paul's United Methodist in addition to contributing time and talents to ACT, Head Start and Meals on Wheels.

As wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, Margery devoted her life to her family which survives her, her husband, W. Frank Shipe Jr., Professor Emeritus of Ithaca, NY; daughters, Suzanne Ahn of Washington, DC and Patricia Reardon of Potsdam, NY; eleven grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

A service of remembrance will be held at 3:00pm today, September 3, 2007 at St. Paul's United Methodist Church with the Rev. Robert McCune officiating.

In lieu of flowers, memorials in Margery's memory may be directed to St.Paul's UMC, 402 N. Aurora St, Ithaca, NY 14850 or the American Cancer Society, 6725 Lyons St.
East Syracuse, NY 13057