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Memorial Keepers (2)
Margaret "Marge" Laux Wardlaw
January 5th, 1931 - December 7th, 2024
Marge was the epitome of perseverance. When her marriage ended after only 13 years, she committed to, and succeeded in, raising her three children and getting them through college. When the family home burned to the ground in the Sycamore Fire, Marge called a contractor two days later to rebuild. During the last five years of her life, despite the Covid lock-down, breast cancer, kidney stone surgery, an attack of Shingles that crippled her right hand, moving from her beloved home in Montecito to an apartment at Samarkand and, finally, Hospice, Marge continued to get out of bed every single day until her last – because doing otherwise would be ‘giving up.’ Stubborn, determined, and independent, she died while sitting up in the early morning of December 7th, 2024. Marge’s daughter, Lee, and her nighttime caregiver, Christine, were by her side, holding her hands.
Marge was 93 years, 11 months, 2 days old.
Born in Pittsburgh, PA on January 5th, 1931, Marge was the only child of John Joseph Laux and Selma Margaret “Peg” Yenke. John, who was raised by a single mother, worked as a clerk at an electrical plant during the day and attended school at night to learn accounting. Peg, one of 10 children – 9 of them girls – had quit school after 8th grade to help support her siblings; when Marge was a girl, she worked as a clerk at an insurance agency. Marge grew up in Pittsburgh and Sheridan, OH during the Great Depression, the family moving from apartment to apartment as her parents struggled to make ends meet.
The deprivations continued during WWII. Chocolate, Marge’s favorite food, was (gasp!) rationed, creating a life-long, insatiable need for Hershey bars and, later, See’s candy. Clothing was also rationed; one winter, Marge grew five inches. Peg scrambled to find extra ration cards to keep her daughter in coats and shoes. Eventually, John secured a bookkeeping position at Radio KQV, soon rising to station manager. Marge shared his quick mind for math and was a straight-A student. She would become the first of her family to attend and graduate from college.
Despite many hardships, Marge’s childhood was filled with the fun of eight talkative aunts and countless boisterous cousins – but her most constant companions were books. Marge was a voracious reader, devouring numerous novels every week – mostly mysteries –a habit she continued her entire life. She often remarked that reading had ‘saved her,’ helping her cope during lonely, stressful, or traumatic times.
From an early age, Marge believed she’d been born in the wrong state. She read books about California and Hawaii, dreaming of warm weather and warm waves, while shivering her way through the bitter mid-west winters filled with snow, sleet, and ice. She longed for the hot summers she and Peg spent in Atlantic City, John joining them in their funky beach cottage on weekends.
Marge graduated from Steubenville (Ohio) High School in 1949 and attended Ohio University in Athens, OH. There, she joined the Sigma Kappa sorority, serving as the chapter’s secretary and registrar. It was at one of the sorority’s many dances (she loved to jitterbug!) that she met her future husband, Joseph Patterson “Patt” Wardlaw, president of the Tri-Gamma fraternity.
In 1953, Marge graduated from Ohio U. with a B.S. in Business Commerce. She worked at WSTV radio and WSTV-TV in Steubenville, until Patt graduated with his business degree the following year. The two married in Athens in February 1954.
Not long after their wedding, Patt was called to active duty with the U.S. Air Force. The couple moved to Denver, CO, where Patt trained at Lowry AFB. A few months later, new orders sent the Wardlaws to the Smoky Hill SAC base in Salina, KS. Their first child, Lee Anna, was born there in November 1955. Marge often recalled the scorpions – and once, a tarantula – she saw inside their home, and the Black Widow spiders Patt had to brush off the screen door every summer morning on his way to the Base. Marge vowed if she ever found any of the creatures in Lee’s room, she would take her daughter home to Steubenville until Patt’s discharge.
After Patt left the Air Force in 1956, he and Marge moved to Erie, PA where they purchased WLEU, their first of three radio stations. They operated WLEU for four years, changing its religious format to Adult Contemporary featuring rock ‘n’ roll. Within months the ratings skyrocketed, the station rising from #5 to #1. The Wardlaws were able to buy their first home, and in 1958, their second child, Scott Patterson, was born.
By 1960, Patt and Marge were ready to find a better, warmer place to raise their children. (Marge complained that Erie had only two seasons: Winter and the 4th of July.) They sold WLEU and, after months of searching, stumbled upon Radio KIST in Santa Barbara. The station sat rock bottom in the ratings, but the Wardlaws fell in love with the town. They bought the station and moved to Montecito, where Marge would spend the next 60 years.
While Patt ran the station – taking it to #1 within a few months – Marge was busy in the community and raising their three children. (John Joseph was born in 1963.) She took an active interest in their schools, serving as President of the Parents Club at Cold Spring School, and the PTAs at Santa Barbara Junior and Senior High. She also volunteered with the United Way, the Red Cross, and the Girl Scouts. In 1966, she and Patt started Radio WIN-W in Canton, OH, building the station from the ground up.
Marge and Patt separated in 1967 and ended their marriage in 1970. To take her mind off this major life change, Marge joined Parents Without Partners, started tennis lessons, and taught herself how to sew. She soon found it too difficult to keep up with the operations of WIN-W from 2,500 miles away, and eventually sold the station.
In the 1970’s and ‘80’s, Marge continued her volunteerism in local schools, becoming an honorary member of the SBHS Alumni Association. She also broadened her interests to include fundraising in order to build a bigger library in Montecito. She served as President of the Friends of the Montecito Library Board, served on the Santa Barbara County Library Advisory Committee, and worked once a week at the new Montecito Library for more than 25 years.
After her children graduated from high school and college, Marge joined numerous political, philanthropic, and social organizations, such as the Santa Barbara Woman’s Club, the Santa Barbara Republican Club, the Channel City club, and the Santa Barbara Garden Study Club. She was an active supporter of Direct Relief International, VNA Hospice and, as a longtime cat-lover, ASAP in Goleta. She also made yearly trips to Kauai, feeling more at home there than anywhere else in the world. It didn’t hurt that Kauai has its own chocolate factory…
Marge is survived by her daughter, Lee Wardlaw Jaffurs and son-in-law Craig of Santa Barbara; grandson Patterson Wardlaw Jaffurs of Sunnyvale; son Scott of Goleta; and son John and daughter-in-law Tricia Waddell Wardlaw of Bend, Oregon. Marge was preceded in death by her parents.
The Wardlaw family wishes to thank Marge’s internist, Dr. Gloria Hadsall; oncologist Dr. Fred Kass; and VNA nurse Gayle Iniguez – all of whom provided expert and compassionate care and support during Marge’s last four years. Cremation arrangements were handled by McDermott-Crockett & Associates.
A luau celebrating Marge’s life will take place in July, the exact date, time, and location to be determined. Afterward, the family will travel to Po’ipu Beach, Kauai to scatter Marge’s ashes.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Marge’s memory to the Friends of the Montecito Library or the Santa Barbara Woman’s Club.Aloha and mahalo, Mama, for teaching us how to persevere. Rest in chocolate.
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McDermott-Crockett & Associates Mortuary
Established in 1906, McDermott-Crockett Mortuary is Santa Barbara's oldest operating funeral home. It is housed in a historic chapel built in 1875, just younger than the Old Mission Santa Barbara. With over 118 years of dedicated service to the community, our mortuary is committed to providing full-service premier funeral care. Our compassionate and Spanish-speaking staff ensures effective communication and support during challenging times. McDermott-Crockett Mortuary caters to diverse cultural needs, offering multicultural funerals and preparation areas for incense burning, ritual washing, and a Tahara room. For those of the Jewish faith, we can arrange for a shomer....
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