Marilyn Harte of Estabrook Road, a fixture in Carlisle's civic life for over fifty years, died at her home on Friday, November 22nd, after a lengthy illness. She was 91.

As all who knew her were undoubtedly aware, Marilyn was a proud Wisconsinite who believed passionately in the power of community spirit and public action. Ever mindful of the needs of others, she brought her Midwestern values to everything she did in Carlisle after moving here in 1966. She loved this town and the people in it, and always expressed gratitude for being able to call Carlisle her home.

Marilyn Ruth Jones was born on May 29, 1933, in Madison, Wisconsin, the eldest of two daughters of Willis and Ruth (McComb) Jones. Her father, a native of Green Bay, was a long-time head football and track coach at Madison West High School, while her mother, who had grown up on a dairy farm in southern Wisconsin, was a homemaker. After attending West H.S., Marilyn enrolled in the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where she became a member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority and earned a degree in Occupational Therapy in 1955.

After graduation, Marilyn worked first at Children's Hospital in San Francisco and then for a year at the Larue Carter Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, helping mental health patients return to their communities as soon as possible, an inclusive approach far ahead of its time. In 1957, Marilyn came east to Boston, where she initially worked at Long Island Hospital in Boston Harbor. From 1958 to 1964, Marilyn worked at the Mass Mental Health Center on Fenwood Road in Boston.

Marilyn met her husband-to-be, Ken, then a graduate student, in 1962 at "The Cocktail Party," a play-reading performance of T.S. Eliot's popular verse drama and one based on a therapy approach Marilyn often utilized in her work. They were married in August of 1963 and then lived for several years in Cambridge while Ken completed a Ph.D. in Physics at Harvard University. In 1966, Ken, Marilyn and son Will moved to Carlisle after finding a home whose owners were unhappy with the recent paving of Estabrook Road. Son Tim was born in 1968, and Marilyn soon threw herself into town activities, initially helping with Carlisle's 4-H clubs and then also joining the League of Women Voters. Here, one of the initiatives she spearheaded was an early effort to build bike/foot paths in the town center. Marilyn also co-founded the First Edition Book Club – still active and meeting on the day of her passing – and became Feature Editor of The Carlisle Mosquito, a position that she held for over twenty years.

At the same time as she devoted her energies to the town in these and other ways, she remained active in her field of occupational therapy. In the late 1970s, she served for several years as Director of The Wayfarers Social Club, a group for formerly hospitalized patients as well as lonely and isolated people of all ages. Subsequently, she also served on the board of Concord Area Mental Health and the Timothy Wheeler House.

Marilyn is survived by husband Ken, sons Will (Lyudmila) of Iowa City, IA, and Tim (Jenna) of Unionville, PA, and four grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister Dorothy (Robert) King of Menlo Park, CA.

A remembrance service will be held for Marilyn at the First Religious Society, 27 School Street, Carlisle (where she was a frequent greeter) at 11 AM on Saturday, January 18, 2025.

Arrangements are entrusted to Dee Funeral Home & Cremation Service of Concord.