Mrs. Marlene Carpenter was the late-in-life adored daughter of Charlie and Lottie Collins, of Chincoteague, the youngest sibling to two brothers and three sisters.
Marlene was married for 71 years to her high school sweetheart, James “Jim” Waine Carpenter. Her beloved husband is a retired 20-year chief petty officer with the U.S. Coast Guard.
The couple moved from Chincoteague to Portsmouth, Cape May, Key West, Miami, and Oakdale, Conn., before returning the family to their island home in Virginia.
Jim took over Carpenter’s Seafood, was active in town politics and the local food bank, and later retired from NASA.
Marlene and Jim had two children: James Waine Carpenter Jr., currently a musician and novelist in Niantic, Conn., and Jill Renee Jester, who lives on Chincoteague Island as a retired 38-year Navy government employee on Wallops Island.
A devoted mother, homemaker, and loyal friend, Marlene also participated in various Coast Guard associations, churches, and civic charities. She was employed at multiple part-time jobs while helping raise her grandchildren. Supporting the island’s community, she remained a dedicated member of Christ Sanctified Holy Church, where she was a member in the tradition of her father, uncles, and ancestors.
Marlene blessed countless lives along the East Coast during her long, transient, and illustrious life. Beautiful, tireless, kind, and sincere, she will be forever admired as an adored spouse, loving parent, sibling, and friend. Her legacy will attest to that.
In her last years, she enjoyed Facebook, and her daily messages, humor, and inspirational cartoons brightened many people’s mornings. It’s simply how she affected everyone.
Marlene was predeceased by her parents, Charlie Collins Sr. and Lottie Thornton Collins; her father- and mother-in-law, Walter and Emma Carpenter; and her siblings, Charlie-Boy and Julie Collins, Ora and Tom Reed, Carlton ‘Corky’ and Francis Collins, Oneida and Russell Clark, and Faye and Sonny Rodgers.
She is survived by her son, James Waine Jr. and his wife, Robin Carpenter; her daughter Jill Renee and her husband, Michael Jester; her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Jake and Michelle Carpenter (Betty Lou, Phoebe June), Ben and Kaitlin Jester (Madeline, Ford, Owen, and Bennet), Zach and Lindsay Jester (Erin, Ella, and soon-to-be-born baby Everett), and Noah Jester.
There was a visitation on Saturday, April 18, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Salyer Funeral Home on Chincoteague. The funeral service was held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 19, at Christ Sanctified Holy Church on Chincoteague. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Christ Sanctified Holy Church, 5072 Main St., Chincoteague, VA 23336.
Services were entrusted to Salyer Funeral Home, Inc., on Chincoteague Island. Condolences may be made online at www.salyerfh.com
