Marilyn L. Thurston

Marilynn Louise Thurston, 90 of Cheboygan, went to be with the Lord, surrounded by her family on Saturday, February 28, 2026.

Marilynn was born to Lynn and Margaret Nicholas in Delaware, Ohio on March 27, 1935. Her name was a blending of the names of her parents. She and her brother Fred lived in many Ohio cities as they moved with her father's job as Superintendent of various schools. She graduated from Elyria High School in 1953 as the Valedictorian of her class and went on to study at Bowling Green State University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1957 with her degree in Education. She was a life long student and finished several Masters degrees in her lifetime of learning as well as classes toward her doctorate.         

She met her husband, Carroll, in college, as they played Adam and Eve in the one act play, "East of Eden" by Christopher Morley. They married at the chapel on the campus of Bowling Green on December 16, 1956. Their lives were blessed with two daughters, Cheryl and Holly.

Marilynn taught in Birmingham, MI for over 30 years at the elementary level. She was selected by the Birmingham Board of Education as one of the most successful teachers and was chosen to participate in the Madeline Hunter program which taught extraordinary teachers how to teach other teachers to excel. Because Marilynn and Carroll both had the summers off from teaching, they spent summers in their log cottage on Mullett Lake. When Marilynn retired in 1990 they split their time between the lake and thier condo in Bonita Springs, FL.

Marilynn was an accomplished classical pianist. She lived life large and with a passion. She loved watching college football games, particularly Ohio State. She also enjoyed watching Turner Classic Movies and Fox News. Reading, music, cooking, theater, an occasional scotch and travel were her other passions. She and Carroll traveled the world together with the Nomads travel club to places like Spain, England, the Arctic Circle and the Galapagos Islands. Her church and faith life were also very important to her. She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Bonita Springs and was involved in Bell and Chancel choir. She will be dearly missed by her family and friends and all those lives she touched.

Marilynn is survived by her husband of 69 years, Carroll; her daughters Cheryl (Steve Trusler) Sabol, and Holly Flory; grandchildren, Leda (Charlie) Flory, Katherine (Thomas) Clark, Stephen (Annie) Sabol, Stephanie Turner & family, Jack and Kyle Trusler; and great grandchildren, Timothy Abood, Luxon and Ellington Clark, Pearl and Opalyn Sabol.She was preceded in death by her parents Dr. Lynn Nicholas and Margaret Nicholas as well as her brother Fred Nicholas.

The family will remember Marilynn this summer with a celebration of life on the lake.

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