Marcia Jean Myers Tharnish

Las Vegas, Nevada - We like to think that Marcia Myers Tharnish claimed the mantra "just watch me!" on January 27, 1943 as the first born to Ralph E. Myers and Jean Haynes Myers of Kansas City and she earned it in her actions throughout her 82-year life.

In 1945, Marcia moved to Prairie Village, Kansas with her family, attending St. Ann Grade School and Shawnee Mission East. During her younger years, Marcia loved dancing, her cat Lucy, and all the other cats in the developing neighborhood.

Marcia excelled at dancing and at school. She was able to achieve top honors in both, even completing high school early. Afterwards, she and her husband Frank G. Kavanaugh moved with their newborn daughter Kathy Jean to Manhattan, Kansas to attend Kansas State University. She again graduated with honors in just three years.

Marcia advanced the frontier of women in law when she applied, was accepted to and graduated from Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kansas. Only six women graduated from this law school in the entire decade of the 1960s.

As women struggled to find law firms willing to hire them, Marcia moved back to Kansas City, taking a non-practicing trust officer position with Johnson County Bank. Nevertheless, and it was no surprise to anyone, she passed the Kansas Bar exam. She used her expertise to be on the side of good, and to fight for worthy causes for family and friends, again exhibiting a "just watch me" posture.

Marcia later moved on to successful positions with insurance companies, settling damage claims and real estate sales. During this time, she married John Graham, continued with ballroom dancing and a growing interest in saving homeless animals which continued steadily for the rest of her life. To better care for animals, she even attended Kansas State College of Veterinary Medicine for a short time.

In 1984, she met and married Albert Tharnish, her devoted husband for the next 41 years. Al and Marcia were purrfectly complementary to one another, allowing each to grow and live with respect and love.

Moving to Portland, Oregon in 1991, Marcia continued her avocations, dancing and care for animals and her vocations in insurance claims adjusting. Participating in multiple dance competitions around the country and Europe into her 70's, she defied age.

Marcia was also a pioneer in sporting leisure wear with moccasins, perfect nails, and gorgeous hair. She was a loyal reader of the Kansas City Star and had the paper delivered to her in Portland and then Las Vegas right up to the end of her life. She had an infectious laugh and loved a good story.

Preferring a warmer and dryer climate, Marcia and Al retired to Las Vegas in 2017 where she passed away quickly and peacefully on August 4, 2025; 82 years well lived.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her brother, Gordon E. Myers II and daughter, Kathy Jean Kavanaugh. She took great care of her brother Gordon, her grandmother and mother and was always thoughtful of friends and family. She was an extremely generous person her entire lifetime.

She leaves her husband, Albert Tharnish; brother, Ralph E. Myers Jr. (Dana Franklyn Myers); granddaughter, Maret Miller; grandson, George Sterling Clay; niece, Lindsy L. Myers (Mitchell Douglass); nephew, Byron E. Myers (Thu-Thao Bui); her dance community and friends, and, of course, her cats and dogs.

To honor her, we request that donations be sent to her favorite animal rescue organizations: the Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon (feralcats.com); Best Friends Animal Society (bestfriends.org); The Humane Society of Greater Kansas City (hsgkc.org); or the rescue organization of your choice.