Gayle H. Marlowe

A strong, beautiful, and courageous woman, Gayle passed away from lung cancer on June 22, 2010.

Gayle was an exceptional, loving, and much beloved person. She was very accomplished in many respects, but for Gayle, nothing was more important than her roles as wife, mother, and friend. A beautiful person inside and out, she was as selfless and caring a person as one could ever meet.

Gayle was born Carole Gayle Hudgins in Mathews, Virginia, on November 8, 1939, to Elizabeth and Carlton Hudgins. She spent most of her early adult years in Richmond, Virginia, before moving to McLean with Brian in 1993, and to Hilton Head, SC in 2006.

Wherever Gayle went, she made friends quickly, and was much loved for her genuine, caring warmth, her sharp intellect and humor, and her interest in other people. Gayle loved her family and her friends, and that love was returned, many times over.

Gayle lit up a room, just by entering it. Her smile, her laugh, her gentle humor, touched everyone around her in a meaningful way. She was caring and kind. Gayle left a lasting, positive impression on the people and institutions she touched.

Her many accomplishments include an outstanding business career as part owner and vice president, of Bowers Nelms and Fonville, then Richmond’s largest real estate firm, where she ran the residential unit for many years. She was in charge of fourteen offices and more than 500 agents.

Having left Westhampton College near the age of twenty, she returned to the University of Richmond later in her business career, earning her BS in 1992, at the age of 52. She never ceased evolving, improving herself. Gayle was an achievement-oriented person.

Giving to others was a way of life for Gayle. She volunteered on many Boards and chaired Capital Hospice in Northern Virginia for two years, as well as PRS (Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services).

Gayle was a former club champion in tennis, and the first woman president of the Richmond Tennis Patrons’ Association, where she ran both men’s and women’s professional tournaments. She loved tennis, made many friends, and was an excellent player, never taking any game too seriously.

Gayle was an accomplished bridge player, and became an avid golfer so that she and Brian could travel and enjoy many special venues together. At Pebble Beach, she enjoyed the clothes in the pro shop almost as much as the course, always making sure that Brian, too, had “just the right things” for himself.

She loved to play Scrabble and gin rummy with Brian. She made sure to get the Official Scrabble Dictionary, after frequently accusing Brian of making up words. She loved to compete, but again, never in a way that took the fun out of it. Her smile and warmth, in whatever she did, warmed those around her.

Gayle was a voracious reader with a wonderfully inquisitive mind. She set out to write and publish a novel. In 2005, she completed “Labs of Deception,” an environmental thriller. Gayle expressed herself beautifully, both verbally and in print.

She loved to travel, and her favorite city abroad was Paris. Though she was not nearly at full strength, Gayle thoroughly enjoyed a last visit there with Brian for her 70th birthday in November, which she called “an idyllic trip,” creating many wonderful memories.

Just as Gayle filled others’ lives with beauty, so did she fill her own. Whether it was designing, furnishing, or decorating a home, dressing in her classic Chanel outfits, adding flowers or landscaping outside, or just smiling that radiant smile of hers, beauty was all around Gayle Marlowe.

She loved to give parties, whether it was a tennis or Mardi Gras party at their home in McLean, a 50’s style costume party at their home in Hilton Head, or an intimate dinner at home for a few close friends. Gayle was fun.

Gayle was enormously interested in the world around her, and in what she could do to leave a lasting impression. For all who knew her, that mission will be accomplished.

She and Brian were married for 27 years, and have always considered the children from prior marriages to be their own, from every point of view. Gayle is much loved, and will be missed by the many whose lives she touched.

Gayle is survived by her loving husband, Brian, four children, and 7 grandchildren. They are son Tom St. Clair and his three children Tommy, Tyler, and Katherine; daughter Leigh St. Clair and her daughter Makayla Nielsen; son Matthew Marlowe and his wife Sally; and daughter Rebecca St. Mary and husband Scott, and their three children Aiden, Julia and Lauren. Another son, Brett Marlowe, preceded her in death. Her sister, Matilda Anne Hawks, and brother, GC Hudgins and wife Linda, GC’s sons Chris and Matt, and a cousin, Vicki Pritchett also survives her.

Gayle was a wonderful, loving, mother and grandmother. Her mixture of pride, mentorship, and support, and the memories thereof, will provide strength to the entire family in years to come. Gayle will be dearly missed, and vividly remembered by those whose lives she touched.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Gayle’s memory, either to Capital Hospice, 2900 Telstar Court, Falls Church, VA 22042, or, to Hospice Care of the Lowcountry, 119 Palmetto Parkway, Bluffton, SC 29910.