1916 – 2015

AUBURN — Marjorie L. Ham, 98, a former resident of Beach Road, Monmouth, died peacefully Saturday, April 4, at Schooner Estates in Auburn, where she had been a resident since 2011.

She was born in Monmouth, on April 18, 1916, the daughter of Charles H. and Bessie (Ham) Anderson. She was educated in Monmouth schools and graduated from Monmouth Academy in 1933. She graduated from Farmington Normal School in 1935 and received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maine at Orono in 1962.

Her first job in education was as a one-room school teacher in Wales in 1935 for a whopping paycheck of $11 a week.

On March 28, 1938, in Lewiston, Marge married Donald E. Ham, to whom she remained married for the next 74 years. Marge was a lifelong resident of Monmouth who was closely involved with the community and its educational system. She enjoyed and valued the connectedness of the small town of Monmouth.

At one point in her life, she was a telephone operator for the local telephone company in town. Following that, she taught school at what is now the Henry L. Cottrell School in Monmouth from 1955 to 1972.

Marge was a member of the United Church of Monmouth, the United Church Women’s group, the Cumston Free Public Library Association, Maine Teachers Association, Androscoggin Teachers’ Association and Monmouth Order of Eastern Star, and was a trustee and trustee emeritus of Monmouth Academy. She served as director in the Monmouth Federal Credit Union for several years, as well as director and treasurer of the Monmouth Museum for some time. She and Don were instrumental in the formation of the Monmouth Medical Center.

She is survived by her son, Gerald Ham and his wife, Gail, of Gardiner; her son-in-law, Dr. James Dineen of Scituate, Mass.; three grandchildren, Sarah Elizabeth Dineen of Huntington Beach, Calif., James Joseph Dineen and his wife, Kate, of Portland, Ore., and Tammy Ham-Thompson of Gardiner; two great-grandchildren, Calahan Dineen of Huntington Beach, Calif., and Abigail Ham-Thompson of Gardiner; special relatives, Mildred Jones of West Bath, Cynthia Goodenough of Brunswick, Deborah J. Henderson of El Cerrito, Calif., and Judi Jones and son, Grayson, of Brunswick; nieces, Judy Powers of Gastonia, N.C., and Diane Little of Wales; nephews, Bruce Little and his wife, Chris, of Auburn, and Stuart Little and his wife, Ellen, of Walpole, Mass.

She was predeceased by her husband, Donald, Sept. 9, 2012; her daughter, Constance Dineen, on Oct. 22, 1989; as well as her brother, Wilbur Anderson; and two sisters, Flora Anderson and Dorothy Little.

The Ham family would like to express their sincere thanks to Diane Handler of the Monmouth Medical Center and also to the staffs of Schooner Estates of Auburn and of the Androscoggin Home Health and Hospice of Auburn. The level of care, support and dedication that these two organizations provided on a daily basis was extraordinary. The family would like to give a special thank-you to Lisa McDonald and Diane Little for their support over numerous years.

Messages of condolence may be sent to the family at www.finleyfuneralhome.com.

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