Marie S. Holmes, of Greeley, passed away on June 17, 2015 at the age of 87. She was born in Gillette, Wyoming on July 9, 1927 to John and Alma Smelser and grew up on her parents’ farm southwest of Gillette. Marie graduated from Campell County High School in 1943 and married Stewart Ensign in 1947. They had three children. After several moves, the family settled in Santa Barbara, California in 1963. While there, Marie worked at the Westmont College Library and later attended the University of Southern California, graduating with a Master’ Degree in Library Science in 1977. She then accepted a position at ABC-Clio, a national publishing firm. Over the course of her life, she edited and authored a number of historical books including scholarly works and her autobiography.
After the dissolution of her first marriage, Marie married C. Ralph Holmes in 1987 and they spent many happy years together. Following her retirement in 1989, she volunteered at the Natural History Museum of Santa Barbara until moving to the Maravilla Retirement Community. Poor health forced her to relocate to an assisted living facility near her daughter in Colorado, leaving behind many close friends. Her husband, Ralph preceded her in death in 2013. She is survived by her brother, Art (Martha) Smelser of Lacey, Washington, and his children and grandchildren. She is also survived by her three children, Linda (Brad) Kirchner of Johnstown, Colorado, John (Katherine) Ensign, of Woodland, California, and Karl (Vega Overby), of Alexandria, Virginia, her grandchildren, Sarah (Mark) Anderson, Zack (Bryana) Kirchner, Olivia Ensign, Michael Ensign, Seth Ensign, Aleeya Ensign, and Shayne Ensign and her great-grandchildren, Malachi, Tatianna, Elijah, Sophia, and Josiah Anderson.
A Memorial service will be at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, June 23, 2015 at Stoddard Funeral Home. Inurnment will be at Bethlehem Cemetery in Gillette, Wyoming.
In lieu of flowers, please consider memorial contributions to Weld County Food Bank, Habitat for Humanity or JourneyQuest in care of Stoddard Funeral Home, 3205 West 28th Street, Greeley, Colorado 80634.
Please visit www.stoddardsunset.com to sign an online guestbook.
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