Marion Bell
FORMERLY OF DELAWARE COUNTY, PA
Marion Bell, (born Anne Marion Leventhal), age 88, passed away on March 11th 2018 in Walnut Creek, California.
Marion was born to Hyman and Fanny Rosen Leventhal and two older brothers, Paul and Joe, whom she loved and survived.
Marion met her true love, Jerome Bell, while still in high school at West Philadelphia High. After Jerry returned from the war and completed dental school they reunited and married. Jerry, who passed in 2000, still believed throughout their 47 years of a deeply happy marriage that his running into Marion that day at the diner was a chance encounter. They were blessed with two beloved daughters, Nancy and Susan. Nancy’s tragic loss in 1981 was a hard blow. In her last ten years, Marion had the pleasure of the care and support in California of her daughter Susan and getting to know her grandson, Alex.
Marion had a sharp mind and was never far from academia. She received her B.S. in Education from Temple University and initially worked as a social studies and reading development teacher in the Philadelphia School District. When her kids were young, at the encouragement of Jerry, she went back to school for an advanced degree, receiving her Ph.D. in American History from the University of Pennsylvania in 1974. Her interest was primarily in the social history of Philadelphia. In 1977 she published her book Crusade in the City: Revivalism in Nineteenth Century Philadelphia. After teaching positions at several colleges and serving as a general administrator for the National Institute on the Holocaust, Marion returned to the University of Pennsylvania in 1980, where she served as an Associate Director of the College of General Studies until her retirement in 1996. Marion and Jerry also gave back to their community through their support of Israel, generously opening their home to Labor Zionist events.
Marion always had a soft spot for Philadelphia and Swarthmore, both of which she missed dearly after moving to California. She and Jerry made their homes in Springfield, Wallingford and Swarthmore, Delaware County, giving full play to Marion’s impeccable taste reflected in the wonderful homes and gardens she created. She loved fine art and antiques and found creative ways to bring new and old together in the refurbishing of older homes, at one point undertaking an historical preservation of a house in Queen Village, Philadelphia. She decorated her apartments in California with the pottery she had enjoyed creating in her later years at the Wallingford Art Center and with other keepsakes from her Philadelphia homes. Marion’s strong sense of style also found home in how she dressed. Many will remember Marion’s signature pixie cut and round tortoise shell glasses and the English tweeds that she wore regardless of the current trends.
Marion and Jerry enjoyed travelling, reading, classical music and gardening. They enjoyed trips to Africa, Alaska, and Europe, summers in New England and many winter holidays in St. Croix. Photographs of elephants from their visit to Kenya decades ago at the end hung on the wall next to her bookcase with the biographies she had enjoyed reading.
Marion lived a rich and meaningful life, turning challenges into steps forward on new paths. She will be remembered and loved by all who knew her.
Contributions to Marion’s memory can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association of Northern California.