Marilyn West

   Marilyn Doris (Duggan) West of West Fargo passed away Thursday, July 15, 2021 at the age of 76 after a brief and courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.  Marilyn, daughter of Floyd and Ella (Schneekloth) Duggan, was born on November 17, 1944 in Valley City, N.D. and graduated from Page High School in 1962.

   Shortly after high school, Marilyn moved to Seattle to live with her sister Marcy and her family.  It was in Seattle where her love for art, design and florals started.  She attended and graduated from the Floral Design Institute in Seattle, WA.

   Marilyn returned to Page and was united in marriage to Roy West on May 25, 1970.  They farmed several crops over the years and raised sheep on the West family 100-year farmstead south of Page. They worked hard, long hours on the farm and also several side jobs painting houses. However, the beautiful fields of golden sunflowers; gardens of colorful wildflowers and poppies; and their vibrant English garden was their labor of love and tranquility. Later in 1999, they moved to Fargo.

   Marilyn loved to entertain and thoroughly enjoyed cooking and sharing unique and savory dishes with family and friends. She participated in several charity events, fundraisers, weddings, and private events in which she applied her artistic and creative talent in many ways.

   As a founding charter member in 1998, Marilyn was instrumental in organizing the Northern Plains Botanic Garden Society with several fellow volunteer master-gardeners and horticulturist Dr. Chiwon Lee.  She was a tenacious leader of their current fundraising initiative to further develop a Japanese garden in Fargo.  Her passion and advocacy were for everyone to be able to enjoy the cultural experience and the potential it could offer the Fargo-Moorhead community.

   Marilyn enjoyed several years of church mission trips with Roy, volunteering for church community holiday meals, and traveling.  In recent years, she was fearless and loved to seek out new adventures such as driving across the U.S. to visit family and friends in her convertible VW Bug by herself. She enjoyed listening to orchestras, visiting museums, walking through botanic gardens, and watching the buffalo grazing in the rolling hills of S.D. Marilyn had an eye for art and recently started water-color painting and charcoal drawings with several pieces on display in her home.  She had a colorful spirit, witty sense of humor and will be missed by many.

   Marilyn is survived by two sisters-in-law, Carol Duggan, West Fargo, N.D. and Linda Duggan, Hugo, OK and several nieces and nephews.

   Marilyn was preceded in death by her husband Roy in 2002; parents Floyd and Ella; brothers, Dale, Gary, Donald, and Robert Duggan; sister, Marcy Langdahl; niece Lori Abentroth and nephew Bob Duggan.

   The family would like the to extend their sincere gratitude to Hospice of the Red River Valley, Kinder Care of West Fargo and her close friends for the love and caring support they provided for Marilyn.

   In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Marilyn’s honor to the Northern Plains Botanic Garden Society, Hospice of the Red River Valley or Kinder Care.

Graveside Service: Saturday, July 31, 2021, at 11:30 a.m. at the Page Cemetery, Page, N.D. with a luncheon following at the Page Café.

West Funeral Home & Life Tribute Center

westfuneralhome.com

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