Marylin Daugherty
11/10/1933-12/10/2022
Marylin was the third child of Noel and Dorothy Grider of Durham, California. She grew up on a dairy farm with her parents and three siblings. Her family also owned a creamery & sandwich shop and that work appealed to her. She worked at Mr. Chips in Chico as a teen & young adult and then opened her own café, “Marylin’s Coffee Cup.” She also worked at Burton’s Mesa for a number of years before starting on the trip she called “The Big Adventure” in 1971 and, with her children, followed her second husband, James “The Dort” Daugherty, to Alaska. In Homer, she owned both the Sterling Café and then the trailer café on Main Street where Barb’s Video would later be located. She tried her hand at banking and loved being part of the National Bank of Alaska crew, both at the Pioneer Branch in Homer and at the branch in Kenai. She also worked for a short period of time for Land’s End and owned “The Silver Hammer” upholstery shop. She met and married Dayton Child (3rd time’s the charm), and together they developed and owned Mazzeo’s Gardens Subdivision, the Alaska Hybrid Lilly Company, and The Decanter Inn in Kasilof, where they lived until their retirement in August of 2001. She enjoyed their RV years and after Dayton passed, she moved back to Alaska to be near family and friends.
Marylin was preceded in death by husband Dayton Child, ex-husband James Daugherty, dear father-in-law, Raymond “Huckleberry” Daugherty, ex-husband Robert “Bud” Swanson, her parents, her brother Vern, sisters JoAnn Grider and Elaine Souza, and her beloved first-born daughter, Joanie. She is survived by her children, William Daugherty, Shari Daugherty and partner Allen Olson, her granddaughter Emmy Olsen-Drye and husband Rob Olsen-Drye, and two nephews, Ronald & Shawn Sousa and their families in the lower 48.
Marylin survived several illnesses and mishaps and perhaps had not expected to last as long as she did, which is why we are now doing a whole-family memorial. Marylin had her husband Dayton’s ashes and as she wanted to also be laid to rest with James, she asked other family members what was being done with Jim’s ashes, which led to the discovery that The Dort had hung onto his father’s ashes. So she proclaimed, “let’s just hold onto all ‘the boys’ and when it’s my time, we can all go together.” Looking back on this decision, we are sure she didn’t think it would be 14 years… but here we are.
Marylin’s memorial will be at 3pm on Saturday, June 10th at the Homer Elks Lodge and this short service will be performed by the sisters of Homer Emblem Club #350, of which she was a proud member for 48 years and a past president.
Immediately afterwards we will hold a get together upstairs at the Elks Lodge, until 5pm. Many of you may remember Marylin’s skills in the kitchen and her passion for feeding people, so we will provide a few appetizers and those that wish to, are encouraged to bring a favorite of their own to share. Please come and share a story or two about Marylin, Dayton, The Dort, or Huck.
