Marion Malone Berge
Marion Malone Berge, a nurse, teacher and passionate advocate for others, passed away at home in Louisville, Ky., Friday, April 22, 2022, ending a lengthy affliction with Alzheimer’s Disease. Marion was 92.
Marion was born in Atlanta, Ga., to Kirby Smith Malone and Ruth Camp Malone on August 5, 1929. She was the baby of the family and only girl, having three older brothers, all of whom predeceased her.
After graduating from Gordon Lee High School in Chickamauga, Tenn., and the Erlanger Hospital School of Nursing, Marion joined the United States Air Force during the Korean War. After a stint in Biloxi, Miss., where it was too hot for Marion’s liking, Lieutenant Berge volunteered for a transfer to Alaska. It was a fateful decision. That’s where she met and married the love of her life William Henry (“Bill”) Berge after knowing him a mere three months and neither of them having met the other’s family.
Until his death in 2012, they were inseparable. Marion and Bill continued their education first at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) and then in Nashville where Marion earned a Master’s Degree in Public Health at Peabody College. Marion and Bill settled in Richmond, Ky. where they both became professors at EKU and raised their family. Marion and Bill were influential voices on the EKU campus for race relations starting in the 1960s. Indeed, racial equality and generally doing for others were pursuits they continued for the rest of their lives. They served as mentors and friends to multitudes of students. They sponsored and supported the University Ensemble, a gospel singing group, and Omega Psi Phi fraternity, the first African-American fraternity on campus. They welcomed people into their homes. On top of that, Marion volunteered her nursing skills and shared her compassion with anyone that needed care or support.
In retirement, Marion and Bill spent happy years in their cabin on Wood Creek Lake. When not at the lake they were blazing trails on the highways to be doting grandparents, visit other relatives, and regularly follow EKU athletics.
Marion is survived by her children Theodore J. (Ted) Berge of Lexington, Kentucky and his wife Stacy; Thomas F. (Tom) Berge of Louisville, Ky. and his wife Amy; grandchildren Jack Berge (Amber), Sara Berge (BJ Duncan), Meredith Reeves (Joe), Will Berge (Caroline), and Quinn Berge, as well as two great-grandchildren: Kamdin and Merritt. She also leaves to mourn her loss her “angel” Maria Valera with whom she lived and was cared for the last five years of her life as her Alzheimer’s Disease progressed. Maria, along with members of her family and friends, provided the best of care for “Mamma Marion” – the exacting and compassionate care that Marion provided to others throughout her life.
Memorial services will be held 6 p.m., Wednesday, May 4, 2022 at Kerr Brothers – Harrodsburg Road. Visitation is Wednesday 4:30 – 6 p.m. at the funeral home. She will be laid to rest in a private family ceremony at Camp Nelson National Cemetery, beside her husband Bill. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Dr. William and Mrs. Marion Berge Scholarship at EKU, which was set up by a former student in their honor to provide scholarships for eligible African American students. Donations can be made online at https://www.eku.edu/scholarships/foundation.htmlselecting through the link “Make a Gift” and searching for “Berge” and selecting the scholarship, or by sending a check to the Eastern Kentucky University Foundation at Eastern Kentucky University, Office of Development, CPO 19A, 521 Lancaster Avenue, Richmond, KY 40475-3102. Please designate your gift to Dr. William and Marion Berge Scholarship on the memo line.