Obituary

On 10/10/34 Margie (Marjorie Ann Upham) was born to Donald ‘Doc’ and Eva Upham. She said she was the first of the kids to be born in the hospital.  She was the fourth born of eight; four sisters and three brothers.

Incredibly sad to say, she died in St Joseph Hospital in Bellingham on 10/29/22. Margie was married first to Harold who died in 1973. Then when she moved to Bellingham in 1978, she met Bill Young. They spent the next 44 years together; married at Assumption.  She has five adult children: Beth of Bellingham WA, Mary Jo of Bellingham WA, Jeri (Floyd) of Poplar MT.  Harold Jr ‘Butch’ (Cheryl) of Poplar MT, and Kathy (Brent) of Bellingham WA. Margie has 13 grandchildren: from Mary Jo – Mandy & Mallory, from Jeri – Melissa ‘Missy’, Floyd, and Deni, from Butch – Rob, Harold, Brandy, and Merle, and from Kathy – Ryan, Cury, Savannah, and Nash. Margie has many great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. Over the years, Margie and Bill had many dogs. Probably one of their dogs who made his way into their daily life was Jack, their Scottie. She would say, “Jack is really part human”. Her two surviving siblings are Mary ‘Tootsie’ of Cut Bank MT and March of East Glacier MT.  She has many nieces and nephews; unfortunately, some have died way too soon. She knew they loved her as she loved them. Some of her greatest times was when all who could gather, share meals and reminisce with her parents, Harold and kids, and her siblings. These gatherings left many fun stories to tell over time. For Margie, FAMILY, was the most important part of her life. She would say her kids were great, but her grandkids would trump her kids. She had a quiet faith that was a strong presence in her life. Her daily talks with God were a strength for her and her family. She reminded her family that “we will see each other again”. She had a great concern that everyone would be okay after she died; she wanted each family member to love and support one another.

Margie and Harold lived in many places; she always did the selling of the home and setting up a new home in the next place. She moved from western Montana to easter Montana, then to Helena, MT and then California, then back to Montana. Finally in 1978, she moved to Bellingham WA. She went to college, became the first student body president at Whatcom Community College. She transferred to Western Washington University and earned her B.A. in psychology.  Her work was always about healing families, advocating for Native American people, and any person who felt that no one cared for them….she did.

After retiring, Margie loved her life – she and Bill were certainly partners, doing everything together. They were happy people together. They loved their life no matter what they were doing.