Marcella Paxton

Marcella (Sally) Olson Paxton of Water View, Virginia, passed away unexpectedly on September 11, 2016. The day prior to her death, members of the family and dear friends and neighbors had enjoyed a going away party for Sally and her husband Jim as they prepared to relocate to a senior living community in Charlottesville. She had one last dance with her husband Jim during the party. Sally was the loving wife of Stuart (Jim) S. Paxton, Sr. She grew up in Colby, Wisconsin, and after graduating from high school, moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked as a secretary for the federal government. Not long after arriving, she met Jim on a blind date. They were married six months later in April of 1947. They celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary this past spring. Sally raised four boys: Stuart S. Jr, Laurence, Robert and John. Stuart lives in Bethlehem, PA, with his wife Beth. Larry and his wife Loret reside in Charlottesville, VA, as do Bob and his wife Jane. John lives in Sterling, VA, with his wife Sue. Two of her sons graduated from UVa and two from VaTech, which created an opportunity for many boisterous football game TV parties. She proudly wore her Hokies hat while telling her Cavalier sons she loved them anyway. Sally and Jim have twelve grandchildren and five great grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister Janet Hanson and husband Ed of Eau Claire, WI, and sister-in-law Opal Olson of Lincoln, NE, and numerous nieces and nephews on both sides of the family. Sally also had many, many admiring and devoted friends, most especially Jane Barnes of Alexandria, VA, who was her best friend for more than 60 years. In 1973 Sally and Jim purchased a home on the Rappahannock River. By the time they retired there in 1989, their pool and happy hour events had created an informal community center at Point Breeze. Friendships span generations in multiple families, with Sally and Jim becoming surrogate parents and grandparents for many. Sally and Jim deeply appreciated support from those neighbors, which enabled them to remain at their river home for many additional years. In addition to being devoted to her family and friends, Sally also was active in the work force and community for many years. She had several positions with various organizations as an administrative assistant and worked as a real estate agent in Northern Virginia. She volunteered with the National Extension Homemakers Council as chairperson of the Health, Food and Nutrition Committee; president of the Virginia Chapter; and member of the national board of directors. She belonged to Urbanna United Methodist Church. A needlepoint crafted by Jane Barnes: “There’s a special place in heaven and much admiration for the mother of four boys.” No statement could be more true. Grama, Ema, Mom, Sally, will be deeply missed by all. Services will be at the discretion of the family sometime next spring when the flowers begin to appear. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to either Urbanna United Methodist Church (P.O. Box 217, Urbanna, 23175) or the Upper Middlesex Volunteer Fire Department (P.O. Box 75, Church View, 23032).