Marilyn's status in heaven, which is not to be doubted, is also to be greatly envied. That is if we accede to the wisdom of Robert A Heinlein who asserted that, "How we behave towards cats here below determines our status in heaven." There is a long lineage of grand cats who will attest to Marilyn's compassion and goodness. Those two qualities were the hallmarks of her life.
Marilyn was born in Akron, Ohio to Henry and Louise Deckert. She grew up instilled with the Midwestern values of practicality and humility and also the virtues of perseverance, loyalty, and self-sacrifice of her Greatest Generation parents. Marilyn grew up with her two brothers, Henry and Richard. She graduated from Garfield High School in 1960, the same school as her mother. Go Rams! She attended The University of Akron. Go Zips! (it's short for zippers which is a type of rubber shoe, but the mascot is a kangaroo, Zippy the Kangaroo - nobody knows why).
At the university Marilyn made the one discovery that would impact her life the most profoundly: that Robert Gerald Shriner is a pretty wonderful guy. Jerry, as he was always known, and Marilyn were married in 1962. Continuing the baby boom, they gave birth to their first son, Scott, in 1963 and their second son, Brian, in 1965. During the years of their childhood, Marilyn was a homemaker and also worked part-time as a librarian at East Liberty Elementary School. She safely survived the pitfalls of the 1970's: disco, shag carpet and the like - though she did on occasion forego the made from scratch meal in order to serve a TV dinner on those plastic dinner trays, the ones with the fold out legs. There was also a period in the 1970's in which Marilyn discovered sewing patterns and made everything from vests to Halloween costumes. At the end of the decade Marilyn and Jerry bought an AMC/ Jeep dealership in Punta Gorda, Florida. During this time she was significantly involved in her church and in the cursillo movement of the Episcopal Church.
The couple retired to Texas to be near their son Scott so they could help him and their daughter-in-law Lisa as she battled cancer. During those years Marilyn assisted her grandchildren, Lauren and Steven, in their education and in being a loving support.
See. all those cats were right about Marilyn.
Family was important to Marilyn. She is now reunited with her husband Jerry. She leaves a legacy of family to her sons, Scott and his wife, Nancy and son Brian; granddaughters, Cassandra, Lauren, Alyssa, Laura, and Anna; grandson, Steven; brothers, Henry and wife, Judy and Richard and wife, Sylvia; nephews, Mark, David, Kenny, Jim, and Mike; and niece, Denice. All of whom look forward to being reunited with Marilyn.
She will lie in state on Monday, March 1, 2021 from 12:00 until 4:00 p.m. at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Home. Only a limited number of guests will be allowed to enter the funeral home facility at any one time to maintain social distancing.
In support of our local, state, and federal govt including CDC directives and to protect the physical health, safety and well-being of our community, only a limited number of guests will be allowed to attend the Funeral Service.
A funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, March 2, 2021, at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Home Chapel, 2525 Central Expressway North, Allen, Texas. The service will also be live streamed at TJMfuneral.com on Marilyn’s obituary page by clicking on the following link: https://celebrationoflife.tv/blog/marilyn-louise-shriner. After the service, the recorded live stream will be available for viewing at the same link location.
However, when the maximum number of guests are reached, those who would like to honor Marilyn and show their support to her family may remain at the funeral home in your vehicle, where you can watch the live streamed service on your personal device (laptop, tablet or smartphone) or listen through a designated FM radio channel.
Interment will follow at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery.