Helen Marlene Grim, 86, of Beaver Springs, entered her heavenly home Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, at the age of 86 at Valley View Retirement Community in Belleville after battling restrictive lung disease for the past year.

Marlene was born March 18, 1938, in Reading, the only child of the late George and Helen (Schonely) Grim.

She attended school in Boyertown and Shanesville where she attended a one-room school house until the fifth grade. It was there that she was inspired to become a teacher because of a special teacher she had.

The family moved to Williamsport, Elysburg and then to Beaver Springs in 1952.

Marlene attended Beaver-Vocational High School and was a member of the first class to graduate from West Snyder High School in 1956.

She graduated from Bloomsburg State College in 1960 with a B.S. degree in Elementary Education and began teaching kindergarten and first grade at Fermanagh-Mifflin in Mifflintown from 1960-1970. It was during this time that she attended Bloomsburg State College in the summers to earn her master of education degree.

She spent the summer of 1965 in Hawaii to tour and attend the University of Hawaii. Marlene also joined a tour group in 1966 from Bloomsburg University and visited 14 countries in Europe — all to earn credits for a master of education degree, which she received from Bloomsburg in 1968.

Marlene went to teach kindergarten and first grade at West Beaver in McClure and Beaver Adams Elementary School in Beaver Springs from 1975 until her retirement in 1990. She loved children and enjoyed teaching. She thought of her students as "my kids", even when they were grown and had families of their own, and wrote letters of congratulations to them upon graduation. She also attended the graduation ceremonies until the 1990 class graduated.

Marlene enjoyed crafting, reading, planting flower gardens, going out to eat with friends and baking. She especially loved baking cookies and started in September to make them to give to "shut-ins" and friends at Christmas. She loved to send cards to people on special occasions or just "thinking of you" cards and continued the "lost art" of letter writing.

Marlene collected baskets, bears, angels and sleighs which she received from friends and attending estate sales, flea markets and antique shows.

She was a member of the Beaver Springs Ambulance Club, Preceptor Delta Mu Chapter of Beta Sigma Phi, a charter member of the Juniata County Business and Professional Women's Club and PASR.

She was a member of Christ Church, Beaver Springs since 1952, where she was superintendent of the intermediate department for 10 years, sang in the choir, taught at Day Camps and Bible School and served on the visitation committee and various other committees throughout the years.

A visitation will be held Monday, Oct. 28 from 10 to 11 a.m. at the Kreamer Funeral Home, 130 S. Zechman St., Beavertown, where the service will follow at 11 a.m., conducted by Rev. Dave Meckley.

Burial will be held in Adamsburg Cemetery, Beaver Springs.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children's Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 or to the M.A.C.C. at 67 Elm St., Beaver Springs, PA 17812.

A School Teacher's Poem - One hundred years from now it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money was in my bank account nor what my clothes looked like. But the world may be a better place because I was important in the life of a child. (excerpt from "Within my Power" by Forest Witcraft)