Marguerite Matthews

Marguerite Matthews love of life didn’t come to an end with her death. Marguerite, age 84, died in her home in Pensacola, FL on July 25, 2021.

A visitation will be held Saturday, November 20, 2021 from 10 am to 11 am at Eastern Gate Memorial Funeral Home, 1985 West Nine Mile Road, Pensacola, FL 32534, followed by a memorial service from 11 am to 12 pm.

Marguerite is survived by her four children, Michael Matthews, Lisa Matthews, Joni Murano, Traci Matthews, and two brothers Kenneth Anderson and William Clemmons. She has 6 grandchildren, 8 great-grandchildren.

Marguerite was a caring mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, daughter, sister, and friend. She was loved, is missed, and will always be cherished. Marguerite’s pride was her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Marguerite had a loving heart and no-nonsense approach. She lived her life with zest and perseverance. She always had a “can-do” attitude and took on challenges with confidence.

Her story starts on Nov 1, 1936, the oldest child born to Charles and Bertha Hendrix Anderson. Marguerite Evelyn Anderson was born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky, and spent her childhood around loving family, a slew of aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. She graduated from Henry Clay High School in 1955, and later attended Kentucky Business College.

Marguerite married the love of her life, Jerry Lee Matthews from Lexington, KY. Jerry was a Navy man and had just returned after serving in Korea. They started a family right away.

The start of her career was a domestic engineer raising four children. She worked hard ensuring the family had their needs met. She even sold Vivian Woodard cosmetics and Tupperware to make extra cash. After a divorce, she attended business college. She became a bookkeeper, secretary, legal secretary and civil service employee. She retired from the State of Florida.

Her hobbies included bowling, softball, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, computer games (Mahjong and solitaire). She loved to garden and her green thumb proved successful. Her rose gardens were among the prettiest to behold.

Marguerite spent time in the kitchen cooking many delicious meals for her family. Her fried chicken and potato salad were the BEST. She also liked to grill a big, fat T-Bone steak - rare of course! She could make a mean pot of chili, too. Her holiday meals were scrumptious. Family members still brag about her ambrosia salad, to which daughter Traci can definitely match. Her chicken and dumplings and pot roast meals disappeared quickly, too.

Marguerite was an avid bowler for many years and was very proud of her bowling accomplishments. She had an impressive left hand hook throwing a 16 pound ball! She enjoyed many high score games, receiving numerous trophies and accolades. She carried an average as high as 195.

She loved music. She loved Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, George Jones, Conway Twitty, Merle Haggard, Marty Robbins, Willie Nelson, George Straight, Hank Locklin, Don Williams, Vince Gill, and earlier artists were Les Paul & Mary Ford, and Joni James. She loved to dance the Jitterbug. She could tell a good joke, too. Her punch lines were spot on.

Marguerite taught solid values, respect and love for others, and most of all the importance of having a close family.

Thank you to all who honored Marguerite. We love you.