Delta County CO Archives Obituaries.....Savage, Martha P. April 1, 2004
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/co/cofiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Kathleen Haney khaney@wic.net April 7, 2004, 9:10 am


Grand Junction Free Press 
Tuesday, April 6, 2004 page 6

Savage, Martha P.

Jan. 1, 1910 - April 1, 2004

	Lifetime Paonia resident Martha P. Savage died April 1 at Paonia Care
and Rehab Center.  She was 94.

	A memorial service will be held at the Crawford United Methodist Church
at 11 a.m. April 13, with James Gall officiating.  Inurnment will follow
at the Garden of Memories Cemetery near the church.

	She was born Jan. 1, 1910, in Hamburg, Ark., a New Year's gift to Leslie
J. and Sallie L, Savage, At the age of 6, she traveled with her family to
western Colorado, where they initially resided in a log cabin on Crystal
Creek.  In 1918, the family moved to Crawford, and in 1924, into the
residence that would become known as the Savage family home until 1998.

	Following graduation from Crawford High School, she attended Western
State College in Gunnison and graduated in 1931 with a degree in
education.  She later obtained a certificate in administration from
Northwestern University.  Her career as an ardent advocate of' education
spanned almost four decades, beginning as an English teacher in a
one-room school in Hopper, holding the position as principal of Hotchkiss
High School and ending 36 years later as the Delta County Superintendent
of Schools, a position she held for 27 Years.

	During the time she served as superintendent of schools, she reorganized
the school district to encompass Delta, Gunnison, Montrose and Mesa
Counties.  Prior to being elected to that position, she taught English
literature in Hotchkiss for seven years.  After retiring in 1967, she
returned to the family home in Crawford to care for her aging parents.

	She loved children.  Her home, known for the Savage Bell Towers, served
as a gathering place for the ringing of the bells on holidays and special
occasions.  Later, she and her sisters donated their bell towers to the
Delta County Historical Museum, where they can still be seen and heard. 
She also expressed her love of music through her beautiful voice.  She
was active in various music organizations including singing with the
women's coral group at Western State College and later as the requested
singer at many local events.

	She had a passion for reading and volunteered many hours with the
Crawford Community Library.  She was an active member of the Crawford
Methodist Church, served as the Grand Matron of the Order of Eastern
Star, and was Crawford's Pioneer Queen in 1982 and Marshall of the Delta
County Parade in August 1991.  In 1988, she received the Distinguished
Alumni Award from Western State College.

	She was a life-long Democrat and in 1940, she accompanied her father to
the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, when he was a delegate. 
Since 1998, she has resided at the Paonia Care and Rehab Center.

	She was preceded in death by her parents, Leslie J. and Sallie L.
Savage; her two sisters and their husbands, Annie Laura and Harold
Richardson, and Leslie Janie and Fred E. Hagie.

	She is survived by two nieces and one nephew, Sallie Hagie, of
Scottsdale, Ariz., Jerene Jex and her husband, Earl, of Bloomington,
Minn., and Leslie Hagic and his wife, Marilyn, of Shoreview, Minn.  She
is further survived by four great-nieces, Markeah Jex and Traci Hagie, of
Denver, Dasha Jex, of Fremont, Calif., and Niesha Stidgdr, of Eden
Prairie, Minn.; one great-nephew, Kevin Hagie, of Charlottesville, Va.;
and a great-great-niece, Annika Backlund, of Eden Prairie, Minn.

	Martha was a symbol of strength and perseverance in pursuit of quality
education and will be remembered fondly and with gratitude by the many
men and women whose lives she touched, encouraged and influenced in their
quest for knowledge.

	In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to
the Martha Savage Memorial Fund at Western State College Foundation, P.O.
Box 1264, Gunnison, CO 81230.

	Arrangements are under the care and direction of Taylor Funeral Service
and Crematory.

Additional Comments:

The bells at the museum were from this woman's family.


File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/co/delta/obits/s/savage14gob.txt