•Part 2
"I could never love anyone as I love my sisters."
---Jo March in "Little Women"
Touring Orchard House (circa 1650) in Concord, Massachusetts - the historic home where Louisa May Alcott not only wrote but also set her classic "Little Women" in 1868 - I honed in on the March sisterhood. How lovely it must have been to have a sister. All of us are not so lucky. An only child of older parents, I was fortunate to have been born at all. But observing several sets of sisters throughout my youth, I often imagined what it might have been like.
A native of Louisville, Mississippi, Marilyn Grace Upchurch Moore arrived in Franklinton some years after her older sister, Frances Upchurch Frazier. Marilyn was the beloved wife of native son George Duke Moore (1941 -2003). Moving here in the early 1970s, the young couple had their two precious daughters Kelli Elizabeth (Darbonne) and her younger sister Nancy JoJan (Miller) in tow. Kelli joined my fourth grade class at Bowling Green, and we became fast friends.
Brother of Jan Moore Jenkins, Mr. Duke became co-owner, with his brother-in-law Richard Jenkins, of Moore & Jenkins Insurance Agency - the business his parents George and Marah Burris Moore originally founded.
The Duke Moore family first lived in East Acres, and then on North Main before they moved to Lake Choctaw. Ms. Marilyn, who had a flair for decorating, made each abode more beautiful than the last. But it was their final home, the Moore family home which had belonged to my "Aunt" Marah and "Uncle" George on Parker Street that she made a veritable showplace. Notably, today it is the beautiful home of Jeff and Toni Tageant.
In the arena of home design, Ms. Marilyn was a natural. Not only did she have impeccable taste, but her home boasted many treasures. And she reveled in her friends' enjoyment. When the final addition she and Mr. Duke made to their home on Parker Street was almost complete, Ms. Marilyn called my mother, Margie Nell Brumfield Ellzey, asking her to come by and help her place a few final pieces. I well remember Momma being tickled at the invite but commenting on the way to the car that she was superfluous. We all knew, Momma included, that Marilyn Moore didn't need any help with or advice in decorating. Her talent spanned projects large to small, down to the tiniest gift package. Ms. Marilyn taught her daughters, and my friends, Kelli and JoJan the mantra "Presentation, Presentation, Presentation."
And my family was lucky to be on the invite list for the Moore's annual Christmas Eve party. Ms. Marilyn festooned her home with exquisite Christmas decorations, decking the halls from top to bottom. And she didn't limit decorating to any one season. Even as a youth, I noticed that Ms. Marilyn gave each season its due. When springtime and Easter arrived, her magnificent, florid garden burst into bloom. We felt alive, just to be in the midst, mirroring how it felt to be with Ms. Marilyn. My mother and I always enjoyed our visits in the Moore home where later in life there were gatherings for grandmothers and grandchildren that my daughter Betsy attended with her Mi-Mi.
But there was more to Ms. Marilyn than crumpets and tea. She had a serious side, in her chosen career as a nurse. Professionally, Marilyn Upchurch Moore was outstanding in the field of nursing. A well-respected Registered Nurse, she enjoyed a rewarding career, working in later years at the Bogalusa Community Medical Center (BCMC and now Our Lady of the Angels Hospital) in a variety of valuable roles - Nursing Supervisor, Infection Control Coordinator, and also Emergency Room nurse. When I had my daughter Betsy at BCMC (where my dad, Cecil Ellzey, had long been at the helm) in May of 1992, I well remember Ms. Marilyn appearing right away at my bedside just to check on me. And five years later when my mother had surgery at Baptist Hospital in New Orleans, Ms. Marilyn made the trip south to wait with me during Momma's surgery. Digressing, when a small hiccup occurred during Momma's post-operative care, Ms. Marilyn instructed, "Go get Cecil." Daddy got things straightened out, in a jiff.
Lamentably, Ms. Marilyn and my dad passed away on the same day, July 22, 1999. A date filled with sorrow etched into my memory. Ms. Marilyn left a host of family - husband Duke Moore and daughters Kelli (Dr. David) Darbonne and JoJan (Kristopher) Miller together with her adored grandchildren and local nieces Faith Frazier Bahm and Patri Frazier Gast - and many friends to mourn her loss.
Like her older sister Frances Upchurch Frazier who passed away ten years prior, in 1989, Ms. Marilyn was an active member in Centenary Methodist Church where she sang beautifully in the choir. The music of the Upchurch sisters was infectious, connecting them with the community. The two converged in Franklinton where with charm and grace they lived out their lives and where their memory endures.
I would be remiss if I did not repeat the poem written by friend Margaret Stafford Burch (1930-2022) in tribute to her close friend and neighbor Marilyn Upchurch Moore. I came across the piece in my mother's desk. It is entitled "I Will Come to You" A Tribute to Marilyn:
I will come to you in the springtime,
In the early month of May.
When my beautiful rose garden,
Is in its full array.
You will find my gentle presence
With summer's flowing breeze,
You will hear my voice singing,
With robins in the trees.
When fall's leaves begin to turn,
And fall quickly to the ground,
You will feel my nearness
Everywhere, and all around.
In the winter, when Christmas time arrives,
You will remember the songs, the laughter,
The fireside chats, the house so adorned,
The bountiful meals, the visits thereafter.
I will come to you on the Sabbath,
As at the alter you kneel -
You will hear me in the choir,
And you will know that God is real.
I will come to you each day,
When your faith is sorely tried,
God and I will be with you
Always at your side.
Just raise your eyes to heaven,
When you need strength anew
And place your hand in God's
And We Will Come to You!
