Ann Armstrong Marek

1935 - 2010

Ann Armstrong Marek, 75, of Georgetown passed away on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2010, from multiple sclerosis, which was diagnosed in 1986. Funeral: 11 a.m. Tuesday at Grace Episcopal Church in Georgetown with the Rev. Janice Jones officiating. Memorials: In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Multiple Sclerosis Society in their local area. Ann was born Feb. 20, 1935, in New York City, N.Y., to Andy and Betty White Armstrong. Her father was the Marlboro Man in the 1950s. She married Gabriel Robert Marek on July 28, 1956, in Las Cruces, N.M. Ann Marek was no stranger to community involvement. In the third grade she organized her class to sell World War II savings stamps and later when early married life landed her family in Dodge City, Kan., she assisted with a city fundraising drive yielding over $100,000 to build Front Street, a major tourist attraction. After moving to Fort Worth, Ann broadened her acting career and continued her civic activism. She studied drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York and played many roles in Fort Worth theaters, including the lead role of Sally Skull in “The Big Thicket� in 1969. With a fondness for politics, she found time to return to college where she received her bachelor's degree in political science from University of Texas at Arlington. Her measures to improve the Fort Worth community included a term on the Fort Worth utilities board; working with a group of local women to establish a child welfare unit and juvenile detention center; serving on the Community Action Agency Board of Directors; fighting local racism; serving as chairman of the Central Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association; fundraising for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; and publicly advocating building the Fort Worth East Regional Library. Mrs. Marek also directed the 1976 Tarrant County Jimmy Carter presidential campaign and ran for Tarrant County commissioner and Fort Worth City Council. Ann was a member of Grace Episcopal Church in Georgetown. A special thank-you to Lighthouse Hospice for all of their support and service. Preceding her in death were her son, Andrew Marek; father, Andy Armstrong; mother, Betty Armstrong Bowen; and sisters, Sue Armstrong and Sarah Armstrong. Survivors: Surviving Ann is her husband, Gabriel Robert Marek of Georgetown; daughters, Betsy Marek West of Davie, Fla., Melissa Marek Wheeler and husband, Keith, of Round Rock; grandchildren, Ashley West, Taylor West, Laura Elizabeth West of Davie, Fla., Darcy Wheeler of San Antonio, Wesley Wheeler of College Station, and Gabriel Wheeler of Round Rock; nephews, Peter Bennett of Las Cruces, N.M., Andy Bennett of Cambridge, Mass.; sisters, Meg Armstrong, Jennifer Armstrong, both of Illinios, Patience Bennett and Mary Magnum of Las Cruces, N.M.; and her soul sisters who took care of Ann for many years, Ernistine Harris of Fort Worth and Rosemary Bookman of Holland.