Martha Louise Bowles Edscorn

Edscorn, Martha Louise Bowles died March 22, 2007 at the Phelps County Memorial Hospital in Rolla, MO. She was born March 24, 1918 in Lake Spring, MO. Mrs. Edscorn was preceded in death by her parents, Joseph J. Bowles and Marjorie Bradford Bowles; her husband, Benjamin E. Edscorn; two sisters, Mary Ellen Ray and Marjorie Ann Hahn and one nephew Walbridge P. Eyberg Jr. Mrs. Edscorn grew up in the Lake Spring community and graduated from Rolla High School. Following graduation, she worked at Rolla State Bank (now Bank of America) and attended Missouri School of Mines (UMR) before moving to St. Louis to continue her post-secondary education in business. She then moved to Washington, D.C. to work with the Rural Electrification Program and returned to St. Louis following World War II to work for John Hancock Life Insurance. She married Benjamin E. Edscorn in 1950. From 1960 until her retirement in 1987, she worked for St. Louis Federal Savings (now First Nationwide Bank) and rose to the position of vice-president/corporate secretary. Retirement did not mean the end of Mrs. Edscorn's active life; she lived by the phrase ''you make a living by what you do, but a life by what you give''. She became a volunteer at the Children's Home Society of Missouri where she touched the lives of many people for 19 1/2 years. Mrs. Edscorn also volunteered at the Visiting Nurse Association Hospice of St. Louis. She lived a life of service and when not doing her volunteer work, she cared for dear friends and neighbors. Her memberships included the Pi Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma. She faithfully contributed to the College of the Ozarks, Boys and Girls Town of Missouri, as well as other organizations and institutions. Mrs. Edscorn moved to Lake Spring, MO in August 2006 to share the home of her sister, Mrs. W.P. (Betty) Eyberg .Louise Edscorn is survived by dear stepsons Bob and Kit Edscorn, Hot Springs Village, AR and Paul and Chizuko Edscorn, Maple Valley, WA; four grandchildren and their families Steven and Nancy Edscorn, Southaven, MS; Sandra Edscorn, Germantown, TN; Marsha and Michael Bird, Norwalk, CT; and Natasha and Steve Valach, Maple Valley, WA; one sister Betty Eyberg, Lake Spring, MO; and nieces and nephews and their families including Joe Perry, Salem; Carl Eyberg, Springfield, MO; Jim Eyberg, Rolla; John Eyberg, El Paso, TX; Bruce Eyberg, Kissimmee, FL; Nils Eyberg, St. Louis; Mary Louise Eyberg, Lake Spring, MO, Ken Edscorn, Kirkwood, MO; Georgia Wengert, New Port Richey, FL; Jim Edscorn, San Angelo, TX; and Jean Speece, Nashville, TN. Other survivors include a wealth of dear friends and distant relatives.Services:A memorial service for Louise Edscorn of Lake Spring, MO, formerly of St. Louis, will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 28, 2007 at Christ Episcopal Church, 1000 N. Main Street, Rolla, MO. Fr. Michael Hardwick will officiate and Fr. Carl Eyberg, nephew of Mrs. Edscorn, will preach. A visitation with family members will be at 1 p.m. in the church parish hall. A brief ceremony for the casting of ashes will be at Lake Spring Cemetery following the memorial service. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given in the name of Louise Edscorn to the Lake Spring Cemetery for a contemplative garden in her memory (573-729-4906), College of the Ozarks (1-800-222-0525), or the Children's Home Society of Missouri (314-968-2350).