Bethany Gleason Kallgren Marshall

Her passing was astonishingly graceful; two gentle, delayed breaths, sunlit, with family and Mozart on Mother's Day. Parkinson's had in the end been kind. Dementia had ways of being kind as well. She frequently saw children in sun suits walking beside her. Her slide into confusion became a refuge from knowledge of what wasn't anymore, and contentment settled in. A big smile endeared her to anyone nearby, ensuring the greatest ongoing care from the staff of Columbine Health Systems. Her birth, in Norwell, MA, was not so gentle; they needed a paddy wagon to plow through a blizzard to get her mother to the doctor in time for her arrival. When Beth was five, her mother was widowed with four children under seven. Despite their proper Boston manners, she and her siblings were a bit wild and maybe too self-directed. Creativity and resourcefulness became her way of life. She graduated from Rhode Island School of Design in '44 and married Carl A. Kallgren Jr. in '46. They moved to Redding, CT and raised four children; Dave, Carl, Pete and Lisa. Instead of a career in fashion, Beth dug up the ground and grew her own vegetables; led neighborhood carnivals, cub scouts and girls club; gave sewing lessons and made drum covers, riding chaps, camping gear and most memorably, a fringed surrey in the local high school colors to shade four bucket seats bolted in the back of a '39 Ford pick-up. There were also treasured Christmas cards and joint ventures with her friends; pine-cone wreaths, hats and bags for sale in New York and kid-friendly grown-up picnics to humble even Martha Stewart. In the background all along were extra children, pets, laughter, pranks and occasional explosions of emotion granting a few moments of quiet. Suddenly widowed in '69, she taught art to middle and elementary schoolers and studied for a master's in education. In '75 she married Dr. Hamilton Marshall Jr., a friend of the Atwood family, who might as well have been Kallgren cousins. Soon after, she bought a fine art picture framing business with a dear friend Nan Stone, which she ran successfully for many years. Her daughter and a close friend Erin Nazzaro joined on, and the shop expanded to include a small contemporary gallery with a sideline of ethnic folk art. Preservation and framing of textiles became Beth's specialty. When they sold the shop the new owner Sabine Schultz became yet another family friend. Beth and Ham retired to Las Cruces, New Mexico. While there they enjoyed extensive travels and frequent visits with family and friends. In '01 Ham passed away and Beth's health began to decline. She moved with her daughter Eliza Lisa Kallgren Bethany and granddaughters Rachel and Maya Bethany Ladasky, to Fort Collins, CO. Though long divorced, Beth remained friends with the girls' father, Richard Ladasky, of Fort Collins. The move enabled Beth to see more of her sons Peter and David Kallgren, and Dave's wife Leslie Van Barselaar, all of Lander, WY. With simpler flights, she also saw more of her son Dr. Carl A. Kallgren III, daughter-in-law Wendy Kallgren, and grandson Carl A. Kallgren IV, of Union City, PA. Beth flew east herself to attend the wedding of Wendy's son Billy Eidenmuller and his wife Michelle in Eerie, PA, and visited with Wendy's daughter Vicky Hockenberger and her husband Jeff who live in Rochester, NY, with their children Rachel, Danny and Alyssa. Beth sadly lost her son Peter two years ago. She tragically lost an infant grandchild, her son Carl's daughter Emily Kallgren, twenty-one years ago. Also gone are her sister June and brother-in-law Gordy Robbins of Norwell, MA, and brother Fred Gleason of Newtown, CT, among other extended family members. Her remaining sibling Randy Gleason is still carving birds by the shore in Massachusetts, not far from many of Beth's nieces and nephews and their families. In the absence of a service, which Beth did not want, you might share her spirit by sewing on a button or mending a tear to rejuvenate a favorite piece of clothing. In lieu of sending flowers, please plant a few of your own in her honor. She would be pleased. If you would like to share photos and memories, a web site will be forthcoming. You may contact Eliza at eye2eye2eye@gmail.com.

Tributes

Bethany Gleason Kallgren Marshall

January 10, 1923 - May 9, 2010