Marilyn Jane M Kay Bender , June 17, 1938 — September 05, 2018

Born in Oregon City, Oregon to Adeline and Cecil McKay Sr., Marilyn was raised picking berries, making hay, milking cows, and riding her beloved horse, Chico, on the family’s Century Farm in Beavercreek. After graduating from Oregon City High School and attending Lewis & Clark College, she lived in San Diego and Bakersfield, California for a number of years before returning to the Portland area and working in the insurance industry. Marilyn lived life on her own terms and could be counted on to provide a feisty response to whatever topic was foremost at the time.

Her clever sense of humor helped her find much in life to be delighted by. She enjoyed jigsaw puzzles, sometimes doing the same one twice because, “it was a really good one! ” She also enjoyed gardening, going so far as to unapologetically plant far more in her own yard than anyone could possibly maintain.

She had a knack for incorporating many of the old antiques and farming “oddities” into her home and garden to create a warm and personal atmosphere, and was the family historian, always ready with long-forgotten names and funny old stories about farm living and who was related to whom and how. Marilyn is survived by her husband, William Bender; brother, Cecil McKay, Jr.; and niece Leslie McKay. And although she was taken from us far too soon, she lived a full life, surrounded in her last decades by those she loved most – and was well loved by her friends and family.

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