Marilyn Ann Power, known to her childhood friends as Madie Kelso was born to Roy and Mary Kelso on September 28, 1939 in Stith, Texas. She passed after a long battle with Alzheimers on December 20, 2017 in Montgomery, Texas where she lived with and was taken care of by her youngest daughter Melanie and her family.
Madie was her daddy’s little girl and grew up with taffy pulls and slumber parties and loved her parents greatly. She graduated from Abilene Christian College, married and had children after graduating. She spent her early married years as a stay at home Mom raising her three daughters. She later held positions as a bookkeeper at the Towne Crier restaurant in Abilene, worked for Paul and Virginia Carter at Paul Carter Insurance in Sherman, substituted as a teacher and ultimately became a Middle School teacher and girl’s coach in the Howe ISD. Her passion was coaching the 7th and 8th grade basketball teams and was known as Mama P to all the girls. As much as she loved coaching, her true passion was her Lord and she worshipped faithfully at the Howe Church of Christ where she had many friends. Madie lovingly cared for her father and mother in their later years as her father also had Alzheimers and she would lose her oldest brother Derrell to the same disease.
Madie is survived by her daughter’s Donna Power, Melanie Leonard and Mitzi Power; son-in-law Lance Leonard whom she loved like a son; grandchildren Gentry Leonard, Devyn Power, Preston Leonard, and Dylan Power; brother Leon Kelso, sister-in-law Lorna Kelso, nieces and nephews and their children.
A graveside service will be held for immediate family only on Friday, January 5, 2018. Friends and extended family will be welcomed at the Stith Community Center on January 5th at 3:00pm to celebrate Madie’s life and share stories.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Association. For those unable to attend her remembrance gathering, the family requests that you share stories of your memories at www.starbuckfuneralhome.com that can be shared with her grandchildren.
