Marguerite Mary Martin

Marguerite Mary Martin, 86, of Quakertown, PA, passed away peacefully on February 3, 2016, at Grandview Hospital, Sellersville, PA. She was the wife of Michael T. Martin to whom she was married for fifty-nine years. Born in Ashley, PA she was the daughter of the late Peter and Melania (Suszyenski) Zakjawski. She was a graduate of St. Anns Academy, Wilkes-Barre, PA. and of Wilkes-Barre Business College. She was employed on the clerical staff in the office of the U.S. Attorney, Scranton, PA, and subsequently worked as a secretary in the Washington office of US Congressman Daniel J. Flood, later serving as a receptionist in the VA Medical Clinic in Allentown, PA. As a result of her husbands employment with the US Border Patrol, she traveled the country, residing in El Paso, TX; Daytona Beach, FL; Niagara Falls, NY; settling in Quakertown, PA. As her children scattered, she enjoyed visiting her daughter, Catherine, in Brooklyn and traveling to Japan to visit her son, Thomas and his wife Andrea. She also vicariously enjoyed her son Michaels world-wide voyages in the U.S. Military Sealift Command. Blessed with a beautiful voice, she enjoyed singing in church choirs, for military personnel at a USO Club in Washington, DC, and in company with her family, even in her last days in the hospital. She found joy in the arts, including opera, theater, and poetry, traveling often with her son, Thomas, to the Shaw Festival in Canada and to DeSales Universitys summer Shakespeare productions. It wasnt unusual for her to recite long poems from memory for her own and her familys enjoyment. Throughout her life she had a love of gardening and nature. An adventurous spirit, she led her children on climbs up Blue Mountain to pick huckleberries, explored the desert and canyons surrounding El Paso, attended bull fights in Mexico, took balloon rides, and swam the ocean off Daytona Beach. In her later years she became an avid Phillies fan, often watching them on television. Above all, she was a loving mother and wife, always comforting and encouraging to her family, friends, and strangers she encountered in her work and neighborhood. She was a member of St. Isidores Parish in Quakertown. In addition to her husband, three children: Michael P. of Quakertown; Thomas and his wife, Andrea of Japan; and Catherine of Brooklyn, New York; sisters Marcella Franklin of Chalfont, PA; Frances Hayduk of Moscow, PA; she was predeceased by her brothers Aloysius, Clement and Peter, and her sister, Lorraine Martin. A Memorial Mass will be held on Thursday, April 14, 2016, at 10:30 A.M. In The Sacred Heart Church 243 Lafayette Ave., Palmerton, Pa. 18071. Arrangements are in the care of the C. R. Strunk Funeral Home, Inc. (www.crstrunk.com) Quakertown, PA 18951. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions can be made to St. Isidores Catholic Church Building Fund 603 W. Broad ST. Quakertown, PA 18951. Service Information Memorial Mass Thursday April 14, 2016 10:30 AM Sacred Heart Church 243 Lafayette Ave. Palmerton, PA 18071