Marion Couch

Marion Pickering Couch, age 101, of Nashville, Tennessee, died peacefully with family on Wednesday, June 1, 2022. She was born May 30, 1921 in Iowa City, Iowa, to Stavronia (“Nena”) Kalange Pickering and Arthur A. Pickering. She attended the University of Iowa where she received the BA and MA degrees, and where she met her future husband, Dr. Orrie A. Couch, Jr. Together they had five children, all of whom survive her – Nena Couch (Peter Coccia), CC Couch (Teddy Irwin), Barbara Rose (Glenn), Arthur A. Couch, Army of the United States, Retired, and Chester Couch (Rose Marie); seven grandchildren – Jessica Couch (Niclas Blomgren), Claire Rose, Alexander Coccia, Patrick Couch (Malin), Leah Rose, Benton Rose, and Casey Rose; and four great-grandchildren – Tuva and Maja Blomgren Couch, and Hugo and Jack Couch. She is also survived by a large extended family of Pickerings, Dautremonts, Tainers, the Gaynell Thompson family, Morel Enoch Harvey, and many dear and longtime friends. The family is profoundly grateful to the staff at the Healthcare Center at Richland Place, who loved and cared for her over the last years, including through the worst of the pandemic, and to Caris Healthcare in her final days.

Marion was deeply engaged in support of arts, culture, health, animal, and educational organizations beginning with her move to Nashville in the 1940s. She was co-chair of the first Italian Street Fair in 1957 to benefit the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, and over the years she served in multiple capacities including president of the Nashville Symphony Guild. She was later named the 2007 Nashville Symphony Volunteer of the Year. She was active with the Nashville Community Concert Association, which brought a wide variety of performing artists to Nashville and held multiple board and officer roles on the Volunteer Council of the American Symphony Orchestra League. As an opera lover, Marion was a member of the Nashville Opera Guild since its inception, serving as president of the guild 1995-1997, and continuing as a member of the advisory board of the Nashville Opera Board of Directors. The Nashville Opera Guild honored her by renaming the Francis Robinson Award as the Francis Robinson and Marion Couch Award.

In 1973, Marion was the first non-medical female president of the board of directors of the Middle Tennessee Heart Association, and she continued her support for decades. She was the co-chair of the first Heart Gala and was engaged in many other volunteer activities. At the Nashville Heart Gala in 2014, she received the first Martin E. Simmons Award for her role in the creation of the gala and for her ongoing support of the American Heart Association.

Marion was a lifelong animal lover and longtime volunteer with the Nashville Humane Association. In the 1960s, she worked to find homes for pets by taking puppies, kittens, and even a rabbit onto the local television show “Romper Room.” She was a lifetime member on the board of directors of the Nashville Humane Association.

Marion taught Spanish for many years at Harpeth Hall School and at the Watkins Institute, and she frequently tutored individuals. She took students on study abroad tours to Spanish-speaking countries to enhance their language and cultural studies. Marion was proud to be a longtime member of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, a professional honorary organization of women educators, and she treasured her long friendships with her fellow members. She was also an active member of the Centennial Club, where she enjoyed her own studies in French and creative writing, and took part in chorus.

There will be a graveside service open for all at Mount Olivet Cemetery, 1101 Lebanon Pike, at 11 A.M. on Monday, June 6, 2022, preceded by a visitation at 10 A.M. at Mount Olivet Funeral Home.

Pallbearers are Arthur Couch, Chester Couch, Glenn Rose, Peter Coccia, Alexander Coccia, Benton Rose, Casey Rose, and Clyde Thompson.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Nashville Opera, https://www.nashvilleopera.org/donate; the Nashville Symphony, https://www.nashvillesymphony.org/contribute/donate-now/; or the Nashville Humane Association, https://nashvillehumane.org/; or the charity of one’s choice.