Marilyn Rogers, 80, of rural Columbus, died Thursday, June 22, 2023 following an illness. Born in SE Washington DC November 20,1942, Marilyn was the daughter of William Paul and Rose (Lechter) Paul. She attended DC schools and the University of Maryland where she received a B.S.Degree in Liberal Arts. She later attended The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. Where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a Master of Arts Degree in the History of Education.
Marilyn was employed as a teacher in the Montgomery County, Maryland school system for two years before applying for and receiving a position with the United States Civil Service at the National Institute of Health in Bethesda, Maryland as a Staff Assistant to Ann Gorsuch (mother of the current Supreme Court Justice Neal M Gorsuch) where she assisted with establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency as a cabinet level division of our government.
She later became an Editor of the EPA Journal, where she met and became friends with John Connelly who introduced her to Paul Rogers, his single-father neighbor in Sterling, Va. They met and married on April 27, 1974. She became a stepmother to 12-year-old Jeffrey Rogers and later, birthed her own son, Joshua Dean Rogers March 31,1975. Josh became the center piece, and joy of her life Following a one-year maternity leave, she returned to EPA where she remained until her retirement in 1994.
In December 1996, Marilyn joined her husband in Bosnia Herzegovina where he was serving as a contract military consultant for construction and outfitting of National Guard Amories. Paul’s Bosnian hosts, Meho and Favzia Hrustic “took her under the wings” and helped her navigate the local culture. She immediately became a benefactor to the many “Matchka’s”(cats) roaming the streets of Sarjevo. She enjoyed the “dining outs” with Pauls’ friend Lou Cassi, at the small restaurant across the street, chatting with neighborhood children whose parents sent them out to improve their mastery of English, and week end trips, (many of them with language teacher Ellamira Momchnovic). Paul’s mother, Ruth Rogers, joined them in July of 1997 for a ten-day tour of Dubrovnik and the Adriatic coast.
Marilyn and Paul moved to the four-generation family farm in rural Columbus in March, 1999. Marilyn immediately found employment As Environmental Director of the Miama Tribe of Oklahoma. She applied for and received several large E.P.A. grants and built an environmental center at an abandoned farmhouse and pond on tribal property.
In 1992, Marilyn and Paul bid and won a contract to evaluate the effectiveness of the removal and replacement of lead contaminated soil in Galena and Baxter Springs yards by testing for lead in soil and children’s blood samples. Meeting and working with officials and young families in these towns was a joyous experience for Marilyn which she treasured long after conclusion of the project.
In 2003, Marilyn became manager of Columbus Housing USDA Senior Apartments; another outlet for Marilyn’s energy and tenacity. She attacked with grab bars, wheel chair ramps, heat pumps, and new refrigerators. She had a need for personal approval and her tenants supplied it. Assisted by her husband, she acquired a building site for 16 duplex apartments and secured Federal Tax Credits for their construction. Ground was broken in May, 2007, and the apartments were occupied the following year. They have been a great success. In April, 2011, Marilyn and Paul were named Kansas Site Managers of the Year by USDA Rural Development.
Marilyn is survived by husband, Paul of the home; son, Joshua and daughter-in-law, Megan of Chicago, Ill. and Miami ,Fla.; granddaughter Camille, of Paris, France , and grandson Jackson of Annapolis MD.
Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. Monday, July 3, at the First United Methodist Church, in Columbus. Pastor Dorcia Johnson will officiate. Arrangements are under the direction of Derfelt Funeral Home of Columbus,.