Ida Marie Brush

McKENZIE, Tenn. -  Marie Brush died on February 6, 2024. A memorial service for Mrs. Brush is Sunday, February 11, 2024 at McKenzie First Baptist Church at 2 p.m.  A private family interment will follow at Carroll Memorial Gardens, McKenzie.

Born in Gleason, Tenn. on July 23, 1928, Ida Marie Perkins remembered riding to church in a covered wagon with her parents and brothers, Dick and Jerry. In high school, she’d hitch a ride on the train from her family’s home in Gleason to McKenzie, where she attended school, played on the basketball team, and worked at a soda shop.

When she was 19, Marie married William Henry Brush, Jr, and they enjoyed a marriage that spanned 46 years and three continents. While Bill was stationed in Japan, Marie had their only child, Pamela Ann. It was also there that she began playing golf - what became a lifelong hobby. While stationed in France, Bill and Marie met heads of state and celebrities. Always frugal, the couple refused to drive a nice car in Paris (“the drivers there were terrible!”), and so when they were invited to a formal dinner at Versailles, they pulled up to the valet in a beat-up Volkswagen Bug and were almost turned away - until, in her mink coat, Marie produced their invitation.

While working in military intelligence in Washington, D.C., Bill called Marie one day and told her to grab Pam from school immediately and drive to McKenzie. “I can’t tell you what’s happening,” he said. “I just need you to leave.” Marie soon discovered what was happening was the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Upon Bill’s retirement from the Army, the couple returned to McKenzie, where Pam attended middle and high school and Bill worked for the state.

Along with running the household, Marie became very involved at First Baptist Church in McKenzie. She served there for the next fifty years in a variety of capacities. Her love for others and servant’s heart were evident to all who knew her. She would help wherever she was needed, whether it be as a Sunday school or VBS teacher, hosting ladies’ teas, decorating, or even folding bulletins. She brought meals to new mothers, as well as those who were sick or homebound. She also worked part-time for local businesses, like the Christian bookstore and jewelry shop.

Second to her love for Jesus, Marie’s greatest joy was her family: her husband, daughter, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and precious extended family members. She loved whole-heartedly, generously, and selflessly.

Though Marie outlived so many friends and family - including her husband and daughter, she never complained or wanted anyone to feel sorry for her. Her faith in Jesus allowed her to choose joy, even in the darkest of times. As dementia began to rob Marie of her memories, it could not rob her of her spirit. Caretakers always commented on how sweet she was - caring for others even when bed-bound.

Marie leaves a legacy of faith to her surviving family: granddaughters Krista (and David) McGee of Dallas Georgia; Alexis (and Nathan) Scott of SE Asia; Rebecca Ray of Ft. Worth Texas; grandson, Wil Abney of Orlando, Florida; great-granddaughters, Emma (and Kaleb) Mitchell of Gainesville Georgia; Eliana (and Will) Ingram of Powder Springs, Georgia; Nora Ray of Ft. Worth, Texas; Calla Scott, SE Asia: and great-grandsons, Thomas McGee of Dallas Georgia; and Clark Scott, SE Asia.

In lieu of flowers, please send gifts to FBC McKenzie - missions.

Brummitt-McKenzie Funeral Home, 731-352-4848.