Obit of Crum, Marian - Oklahoma County, Oklahoma Submitted by: Gene Phillips 31 Jul 2005 Return to Oklahoma County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/oklahoma/oklahoma.html ========================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ========================================================================== Crum, Marian Longtime Edmond resident and businesswoman Marian Lucille Noel Crum died January 3, 2003. She was 93. Mrs. Crum was born in Tonkawa, Oklahoma, on May 30, 1909. She grew up on a farm in Kay County, Oklahoma. She attended grade schools in Tonkawa, Round Grove, and Kildare and graduated from Ponca City High School in 1927. In 1929 Mrs. Crum earned her teaching certificate from Central State Teachers College in Edmond. She left teaching when World War II broke out and went to work at Douglas Aircraft, a major wartime factory in Midwest City for the production of C-47 cargo planes. After the war, she worked in the offices of the Edmond Booster, now The Edmond Sun. In 1950 she moved up the street and took a job as bookkeeper at Edmond Hospital, then located over the Broncho Theatre in the Spearman Building. Five years later she was appointed as the hospital's business administrator. In 1967, Edmond Hospital was sold and reorganized from a 21-bed, privately-owned hospital to a much-enlarged, city-owned facility. The closing of the "over-the-movie house" hospital ended a colorful era of doctoring in Edmond. "In those days we charged $12 for the one-and only private room we had," Mrs. Crum recalled in a 1999 interview. "The old hospital didn't have all this disposable stuff. Gloves and syringes were sterilized and reused; needles were cleaned and resharpened. We never lost one patient to staph infection or any other cause due to unsterile conditions. We kept the place spotless." Edmondite Bill Johnson recalls those days. "Marion ran a tight ship, believe you me," he remembers. All of his children were born in the old hospital. "And they couldn't have received better care any other place in the world," he says. "What you did have was a lot of personal care," Mrs. Crum recalled. "You only had one doctor to contend with. Not a specialist brought in for every little thing. The same doctor who delivered you would take out your tonsils and set your broken bones as you were growing up." Following the sale of the old hospital in 1962, Mrs. Crum went to work for St. Anthony's Hospital in Oklahoma City. In 1972, at the age of 63, she returned to Edmond Hospital as its business office manager. Her 42-year career on the business side of the medical field ended in January 1992 when she retired from Edmond Hospital at the age of 81. The day she retired she began volunteer service at the hospital and served as a Pink Lady for several years. Mrs. Crum's life spanned the Introduction of the Model T Ford, two World Wars, and the landing of men on the moon. It all boils down to this, she often said: "Don't take things too seriously, and laugh a lot." Mrs. Crum was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Edmond for 72 years. During that time she served two terms as a Deacon and one term as an Elder. Mrs. Crum is survived by her son Richard M. Crum and his wife, Nancy Kaye Crum, of Edmond; a granddaughter, Kimberly Perseghin and husband Steve of New Market, Maryland; a grandson, Robert Noel Crum and wife Dana of Yukon, Oklahoma; and a great grandson, Gus Perseghin of New Market, Maryland, and Forrest Johnson of the U.S. Marine Corps. A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m., Tuesday, January 7, at the First Presbyterian Church of Edmond. Donations may be made to the First Presbyterian Church of Edmond in the name of Marian Lucille Noel Crum. Services are under the direction of Matthews Funeral Home of Edmond. Matthews Funeral Home Locally Owned 601 S. Kelly, Edmond 341-2787 Published in the Oklahoman on 1/5/2003. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to Oklahoma County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/oklahoma/oklahoma.html