Obituary of Marlene H. Elliott

Age 64, South Rawdon, passed away suddenly on Saturday, August 6, 2016, surrounded by her family, at the Hants Community Hospital. She was the daughter of the late Willard and Helen (Lightfoot) Ferguson. Marlene worked at Canada Post as a payroll analyst before going to work at the Staples Call Centre as an Account Manager. She loved travelling to the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Aruba with the Staples Presidents Club and was so proud of her achievements. She was very well loved by everyone, her family, friends and coworkers. Her passion was music, singing and playing guitar with her band "On Common Ground". She also loved singing karaoke anytime she could and had the opportunity. She will always be remembered for her passionate renditions of Patsy Cline’s "Crazy" and Josh Turner’s "Long Black Train" among many others. She was a big fan of Johnny Reid, enjoyed catching a movie and was fascinated with the supernatural. Marlene loved animals and having dogs, chickens and turkeys to take care of. She cared for her late dog, Nikita for years while Nikita was sick. She was an amazing mother and grandmother. She loved spending time with them as well as seeing all the pictures that were sent to her when she couldn’t be with them. Marlene was generous to a fault and loved spoiling her grandchildren, family and friends. She loved to plan and treat them to different activities such as tidal bore rafting, zip lining, whale watching or a night at the Grafton Street Dinner Theatre, just to name a few. She was also spoiled by Ron. We take comfort in knowing that she was so happy with Ron and the grandchildren in her life. She also enjoyed playing softball and ringette in her younger days eventually coaching a girl’s ringette team. She was the only coach to receive the Ringette Nova Scotia Sportsmanship Award while coaching the Sackville Robins girls team. Marlene was a very giving person and loved keeping busy, whether she was spending time at her country home, enjoying the sunny weather, picking blueberries, relaxing in her pool or going for a drive so she could find a yard sale somewhere. She loved fishing and camping along with many other outdoor activities including hunting. She was very proud to have bagged a trophy bull moose in the Cape Breton Highlands. She was very adventurous and loved to have fun, she would try anything at least once. She was fearless.  Reg, Crystal and Ron feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to spend the last few hours of her life with her at the Doc Walker concert at the Casino Nova Scotia, who she met and had her photo taken with them. Marlene will forever be missed by everyone who knew and loved her. She experienced life to the fullest, sadly it was cut far too short. She leaves a void in the lives of many friends and family, but will be lovingly remembered and never forgotten. She is survived by her sons, Reg (Crystal) and Chris Jones; beloved step son, Stan Elliott (Helen); grandchildren, Dalton, Dawson and Danica Jones, Breton and Peyton Elliott; brothers, Brian and Bill (Sharon) Ferguson; niece, Rebecca Ferguson; best friend and companion, Ron Gammon. Arrangements are under the direction of J. Albert Walker Funeral Home (2005) Ltd., 149 Herring Cove Road, Halifax, where a Celebration of Marlene’s life will be held on Saturday, August 20th at 11 AM with a reception to follow. Marlene had an incredible love of animals; in lieu of flowers, a donation to the SPCA would be most appropriate.