Marjorie Ball

Marjorie "Marge" Ball of Taft, CA passed away on January 9, 2016. She was 80 years old. Marjorie was born on September 18, 1935 to the parents of Ray and Tressie Eidson. She grew up in Ventura, graduating from Ventura High School in 1953. Shortly thereafter, she married John Abram Ball in August, 1953 and the two of them eventually had three children: son, John and daughters, Barbara and Laura. John's job with Shell Oil Company caused them to move around a lot. They started in Ventura, then moved to Santa Maria, CA, Bakersfield, CA and Garden Grove, CA living only three blocks from Disneyland. In 1965, John's job sent them to Kenai, Alaska where they lived for over 4 years. In 1969, they settled in Taft, CA. After John and Marjorie divorced in 1973, John moved on to other places but Marjorie decided to stay in Taft where she lived for the rest of her life. Marjorie enjoyed going to work. While in Ventura, she learned shorthand writing and was a court stenographer at the Ventura courthouse. While in Kenai and all the children were old enough to be in school, she worked as a bookkeeper for a local drug store. In Taft, she started working for General Production Services in 1971 and remained there for over 40 years, retiring in January 2013. Marjorie enjoyed traveling to places. She liked going to Ventura and Oregon to see family but also enjoyed going to places like Cayucos and Las Vegas. Occasionally she would take longer trips to such places as Hawaii, Missouri (birthplace of her parents), and the Grand Canyon. She enjoyed bowling and for many years would bowl in leagues and travel to state bowling tournaments. At home, during her spare time, she liked to knit. One of her most popular items were hand-knitted slippers which she called "booties." Her entire extended family loved them and would frequently ask her for replacement pairs once their current pairs wore out. She loved making them. Marjorie was preceded in death by her parents, Ray and Tressie Eidson; her brother, Wilbur "Ed" Eidson; her brother-in-law, Robert Lewis; brother-in-law, Vern Spiker; former husband, John; and daughter, Barbara. Her survivors include her sister, Maxine Lewis of Ventura, CA; sister, Erma Lea Spiker of Medford, OR; brother, Willard (Joanne) Eidson of Fruita, CO; sister-in-law, Beverly Eidson of Bakersfield, CA; her son, John Ball of Bakersfield, CA; her daughter, Laura (Jeff) Waldrep of Taft, CA; son-in-law, Jack Magilsen of Brampton, Ontario; her granddaughter, Andromeda (Geoff) Busby of Concord, CA; and her great-grandchildren, Aidan and Genevieve Busby. Also included are many nieces, nephews, coworkers and all the friends she made throughout the years. Marjorie will be cremated and her ashes scattered at a location yet to be determined. A memorial service will be held at Erickson & Brown Funeral Home Chapel, 501 Lucard St., Taft, CA on Monday, January 18, 2016, at 2:00 p.m. A gathering for family and friends to share stories about Marjorie and to celebrate her life will be held after the memorial and the location will be announced at that time. The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, a contribution be made to their favorite charity in Marjorie's name.

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