BREWER and MILLINOCKET – Marjorie Helen (Mooers) Jenkins, 104, died Jan. 29, 2014 at a Millinocket healthcare center. She was born Dec. 2, 1909 in Woodstock, N.B., Canada, daughter of Harry A. and May (King) Mooers. Her family moved to Houlton when she was 1 year old and eventually settled in Bangor. She graduated from Bangor High School in 1927 and from the University of Maine, Orono, in 1931, with a BA in Latin and English. In 1956, she earned her Masters Degree in English and Education.
Marjorie taught at St. Georges High School, Tenants Harbor, for two years. In 1933, she went to Brewer High School where she taught Latin and English until she retired in 1974. She eventually became the Head of the English Department. Under her leadership, the Brewer High School English Department was recognized as one of the top three in the State of Maine. Marjorie was also the advisor to Se Beowulf, a club for girls who excelled at English, and a critic teacher for the University of Maine, helping many student teachers during those years. She was a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, an honor society of women educators.
She was married in 1939 to William Earl Jenkins, who predeceased her in 1997. They made their home in Bangor until moving to Brewer in 1957.
Marjorie remembered fondly her fellow teachers at Brewer High School and her friends from Tenants Harbor, Bangor and Brewer. She spoke often of her summers working at the Newagen Inn during the late 1920’s and 1930’s. Most of all, she enjoyed her students and she loved teaching. In a 2006 interview, she spoke of how she loved the young people, and missed them after she retired. At her 100th birthday, she received cards from former students from all over the country.
Marjorie has been a member of the Brewer Garden and Bird Club, the Athena Club of Bangor, the M.P.M. Club of Brewer, both the National and Maine Teachers Associations, the Retired Teachers Association of Penobscot County, and the Brewer Library Association. Marjorie and her husband were original members of St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church in Brewer.
She was predeceased by her sisters, Marian Ford and Harriet Mooers, by her brothers, Robert, Donald and Brian, and by her in-laws, Bob, Dorothy and Helen. Marjorie is survived by her son, William R. Jenkins, M.D., and her daughter-in-law, Leslie L. (Peterson) Jenkins of Millinocket; by her grandchildren, Mark W. Jenkins of Philadelphia and David V. Jenkins of Boston; and by her sister-in-law Deanie Mooers of Portland, as well as many nieces and nephews. She especially appreciated the visits of Donna, Deanie and Melissa in her final years.
The Family thanks Katahdin Health Care in Millinocket for the wonderful care afforded Marjorie during her last years.
A funeral service will be held 2pm Monday Feb. 3, 2014 at Brookings-Smith, 133 Center Street, Bangor. Friends may call 1pm until time of service Monday. Spring interment will be in Woodlawn Cemetery, Brewer. The family invites relatives and friends to share conversation and refreshments at the Family Reception Center of Brookings-Smith, 163 Center Street, Bangor following the service Monday. Those who wish to remember Marjorie in a special way may make gifts in her memory to the Brewer High School General Scholarship Fund, 79 Parkway South, Brewer, ME 04412 or to St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church, 21 Holyoke Street, Brewer, ME 04412. Condolences to the family may be expressed at www.BrookingsSmith.com.