Obituaries

Marcia Ann Jorgensen

PHOENIX – Marcia Ann Jorgensen, 85, of Phoenix, died peacefully on August 7, 2023. She was born in 1937 in Grand Rapids, MI to Helen and Edward Rupinski.

Marcia was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and friend.

She attended Catholic Central High School and was a graduate of Michigan State University with a B.S. degree in Chemistry. She met Walt, a Navy veteran, at MSU and they were married in 1958.

Her experience working in her father’s pharmacy at a young age, led Marcia to pursue a summer internship as a chemist at Dow Chemical. She later worked for several years with the Michigan Department of Health Laboratory, the Agricultural Chemistry Dept. at MSU and Wyandotte Chemical in the Detroit area.

After moving to Phoenix in 1963, she worked with Motorola before starting a second career as a computer programmer for Sentry Insurance and Scottsdale Insurance Company.

Marcia was a Life Member of the American Association of University Women and docent at Del Webb Museum in Sun City, AZ. She was involved in many political, social, and religious organizations and was an avid bridge player, continuing to play nearly weekly while living at the Terraces Assisted Living Lodge in Phoenix during the last four years. She also enjoyed playing golf in the Sun City West ladies golf league during the nearly twenty years she lived there.

After retirement, she spent many happy years with Walt, touring the U.S.A., attending Indy and NASCAR auto races with plenty of sightseeing in between. She enjoyed researching and planning foreign trips and traveled to Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Russia, Peru and Canada.

She is survived by daughter Sandra Searle (George), son Rex (Kathy) Jorgensen, grandchildren Ross, Madeleine, and Kate Jorgensen, all of Phoenix. She is also survived by sister Susan Rybicki of Grand Rapids, MI and brother John Rupinski of Basalt, CO. She was preceded in death by son Curtis, her husband Walter, and brother Dale Rupinski.

Funeral Mass will be at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, 2312 E. Campbell Avenue, Phoenix at 11:30am on Friday August 18th; Rosary at 11:00 am. Private inurement will be at the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona at a later date. In lieu of flowers please celebrate Marcia’s triumph over cancer due to her continued participation in clinical trials and advancements in science by making a gift to the Mayo Clinic or the American Cancer Society.