In Memory of Marion

A dedicated patron of conservation and ardent advocate for the protection of the Au Sable River watershed, Marion Lively fished our waters with great skill for more than four decades. She and her husband, Chauncy, were introduced to the Au Sable by Paul and Martha Marie Young, and often fished here and in Eastern streams with them.

We knew Marion not only as the wife of Chauncy and the loving mother of daughters Anne and Claudia, but also as a fly fisher. She was a pioneer in a sport dominated by men, many of whom wouldn't stand a minute for a "dame" in waders who might just cast better or outfish them.

We know that Marion was very pleased with the growing number of women fly fishers. Through her many years as a teacher and proponent of fishing conservation, she was a major influence on the women anglers in Pennsylvania, and later, through her columns in The Riverwatch, to those in Michigan.

Though illness over the last ten years often kept her from the river (and, according to knowledgeable sources, from easily outfishing any member of our board), we were reminded of her love of fishing and her conservation ethic in the many articles she wrote for our newsletter. The words of Effie Merella were eloquent, informative, and regaling. Many were first published in fishing club newsletters in Pennsylvania and in The Pennsylvania Angler.

Fly-fishing was not just a leisure sport for Marion and Chauncy. It was a lifestyle: a passionate avocation, in which they both took part with great skill.

We will miss Marion's laugh, her love of animals (both wild and not-so-wild), her uncanny ability to remember the most minute details of an encounter that might have taken place decades before, her expertise in spinning the most engaging yarns, and the way her eyes lit up when you countered with a story of your own. (Her stories were always better.) Although we will miss these qualities, we will not forget them.

Good-bye Marion. We enjoyed your company very much. We will deeply miss you.

RWOL

[Top] [Home]