Posted: Wednesday, September 24, 2008 12:00 am
Oct. 20, 1949 - Sept. 20, 2008
Marcia (Klinkebiel) Stalford, 58, of Sun City, Ariz., formerly of Linn County, died Saturday.
She was born in McCook, Neb., to Wendell Paul and Patricia Ann (Rohrbacher) Klinkebiel.
At the age of 3, Marcia contracted polio in her left leg. This would mark the beginning of her strong will to succeed, no matter the odds. Her family moved from Nebraska to Tangent in 1956. She attended Tangent Grade School. The family moved to Albany in 1960 and she attended Madison Grade School, Clover Ridge School and Calapooia Middle School. The family then moved to Shedd in 1963 and she finished her schooling at Central Linn, graduating in 1968.
Marcia worked for Citizens Valley Bank in Halsey and Key Bank in Albany for nearly 20 years. She retired from Key Bank in 1999, because she was suffering from post-polio syndrome.
Marcia and her husband, Michael Stalford, moved to Sun City in 2000, because the climate was much better for her health. While there, she became a caregiver for several elderly ladies, who became her dearest friends. Marcia was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in April of this year, and chose to undergo chemotherapy and radiation, but the cancer could not be stopped. Her Savior, Jesus Christ, has welcomed her home.
She was an interior decorator and would help anyone with that kind of need. She worked as a home interior designer while living in Albany in the 1990s.
Marcia is survived by her husband, Michael Stalford of Sun City, Ariz.; sons Timothy Forster and wife Christine of Surprise, Ariz., and Jed Forster and wife Janell of Tangent; brothers Daniel and Douglas Klinkebiel of Lebanon; sister Paula Slover of Albany; and grandchildren Lisa, Jessica, Lacey, McKinlee and one on the way.
She was preceded in death by her grandparents, Leta and Henry Klinkebiel and Irene and Harvey Rohrbacher; and parents Wendell and Patricia Klinkebiel.
A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Oct. 4 at Calvary Baptist Church, 800 34th Ave. S.E., Albany.
Memorial contributions may be made to any hospice or to the American Cancer Society.