Lester Marshall

1923 - 2018

Jul 19, 1923 - Nov 22, 2018 Lester R. (Les) Marshall, longtime resident of Whittier and most recently of Morningside of Fullerton, passed away the evening of Thanksgiving, November 22, 2018 at the age of 95 years. He was born in Whittier, California to Carl E. and Alta I. Marshall on July 19, 1923. He was the youngest of three children, all of whom attended schools in La Puente, CA. Lester graduated high school in 1941 and then Fullerton Jr. College in 1943, followed by serving three and a half years stateside in World War II as an Aviation Crew Chief in the US Marine Air Corps. He met and married Ruth Hinshaw of Whittier in 1947, and received his Bachelor of Arts in Education from University of California at Santa Barbara, then a Master's Degree in Education with Administrative Credentials from California State College at Long Beach. He taught Industrial Arts at the high school level in Whittier Union High School District for 35 years, having established the Industrial Arts Department at California High School (Calhi) in Whittier from the first year the school opened. He served as Department Chairman for many years and received Industrial Arts Educator of the Year in 1975. He taught at Calhi until his retirement in 1983. Les had extraordinary woodworking and mechanical skills and he shared his remarkable talents in the classroom, with numerous community projects, First Friends Church of Whittier, Habitat for Humanity and many others. He is survived by his wife of 71 years, Ruth, daughter Janet Marshall Morgan (Bart Kolodziejczak), son Kent L. Marshall (Cindy) and two grandsons, Ryan B. Marshall and Bryce G. Marshall. A service celebrating his life will be held January 31, 2019 at 1:30 p.m. at First Friends Church, 13205 Philadelphia, Whittier, CA 90601. Please sign the guestbook at legacy.com/obituaries/whittierdailynews.