Marsha was born December 29 , 1953 in N ocona , Texas to Charles and Martha Christiansen. She was raised in Illinois and Iowa , graduating in 1972 from Central High School in Davenport, Iowa .
After high school, Marsha joined the United States Air Force and served from 1972 – 1979 based at McChord Air Force Base in Tacoma , Washington. While in the Air Force, she met her husband Patrick B owe and they married in 1977. Their son Michael was born in 1979. While living in Tacoma, Marsha graduated from Clover P ark Vo-Tech with legal s ecretary c ertification .
In 1986, P at, Marsha and Michael moved to Spokane Washing ton with Pat’s job and then on to Boise Idaho in 1993 .
Marsha was very creative, a wonderful decorator , a great conversationalist and always stayed up on current events. She had many different hobbies, was an excellent artist/crafter and an avid reader. She loved her flower gardens, her cats and her backyard bird sanctuary . Marsha proudly called herself a Bird N erd. Her love of hummingbirds was one of her greatest joys. She gained a knowledge of these little gems through the Intermountain Bird Observatory and shared her knowledge of hummingbirds with anyone who would sit still and listen to her go on and on about them.
Marsha never knew a stranger and always strived to find the good in everyone. Kindness was always at the forefront of her life. “Always be kind to yourself , ” she would say, “and be especially kind to others.”
Marsha was preceded in death b y both parents, stepfather Marvi n Christiansen, sisters Linda Sievertsen, Shirley Daily and brother Monte Christiansen. She is survived by her loving and wonderful husband Patrick, son Michael and sisters JoAnne Glover of Phoenix , AZ , Dorothy Stark (Junior) and Sharon Rios ( Oscar) both of Davenport, I A and also many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends (most of whom she considered family too ) .
A special thanks goes to D r . Karl Schultheiss . Dr. Lindsey Sales and the entire staff at St. Alphonsus Boise Cancer Institu te for the quality care, patience and kindness they provided Marsha. Also, to Keystone Hospice, who lightened the load the family had to bear.
Services will take place at Bowman Funeral Home in Boise, ID with burial at the Idaho State Veteran’ s Cemetery in B oise .
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made in Marsha’s name to t he American Cancer S ociety ( https://www.cancer.org/ ) , Intermountain Bird Observatory hummingbird fund ( https://give.boisestate.edu/ibo ) or a charity of your choice.
Marsha’s service will be live-streamed August 31, 2020 at 1:30 pm to watch her service go to http://www.bowmanfuneral.com/livestream/ Password bowmanlive
Marsha’s Tribute Video https://www.tributeslides.com/tributes/show/27QL529NW348HKT5
Marsha’s Celebration of Life https://vimeo.com/452665339
Marsha’s Idaho State Veterans Cemetery Committal Service https://vimeo.com/454479459