Marcia Louise Frede, the daughter of Ernest and Laura (Uttvits) Johnson, was born May 9, 1929, on the family farm outside of Westboro, Missouri. She attended Westboro High School, graduating in 1947. Marcia then attended Central Methodist College in Fayette, Missouri. She later took additional classes at Tarkio College, Tarkio, Missouri.

Yale, a country school, was seeking a schoolteacher and contacted Marcia to teach at Yale Country School for one year. Her mother, Laura, had taught at Harvard Country School, in Nebraska, and it was a family joke of the two school rivalries being greater than the Ivy League universities.

Marcia was active in 4-H and during her sophomore year of high school, she was honored to show her club calf at the Ak-Sar-Ben Livestock Show in Omaha, Nebraska. The mule barn was the place for entrants to spend free time and she caught the eye of Jim Frede, a senior from Rock Port, Missouri. On the last night, a boy asked Marcia to sit with him at the awards banquet and she accepted the offer. However, the chaperone of the Missouri Delegation intervened, requesting Marcia to join him at the head of the table to represent the Missouri Delegation. She declined the boy’s invitation, and this twist of fate gave her future husband, Jim, an “in” to get better acquainted. On June 11, 1950, Marcia was united in marriage to Jim Frede at the Methodist Church in Westboro. They became the parents of two children, Janet Leigh and David Edward. Jim passed away in 2021.

Marcia was a devoted farm wife and took an active role. Later, she became a seasonal clerk for the Atchison County Collector’s office for numerous years. She also worked many summers at Rock Port Telephone office. She was a 4-H leader, member of the National Liberty Belles Extension Club, the Cosmopolitan Federated Club, and Order of Eastern Star. Marcia passed away Sunday, February 9, 2025, at Community Hospital-Fairfax, Fairfax, Missouri, at the age of 95.

Besides her parents and husband, Jim Frede, Marcia was preceded in death by nephew, Gary (Cynthia) Clifton; and sister and brother-in-law, Helen (Curtis) Clifton. Survivors include children, Janet (Dave) Taylor and David (Karen) Frede; grandchildren, Anne (Jay) Davidson, Benjamin (Elaina) Frede, and Sally Frede; and great-grandchildren, Ryann Davidson, Will Davidson, Charlotte Frede, and Elliott Frede.

A funeral service was held Monday, February 17, 2025, at Minter Funeral Chapel, Rock Port, conducted by Pastor Richard Boettner. Interment was at Greenhill Cemetery, Rock Port. Memorials may be directed to Greenhill Cemetery. Services were under the direction of Minter Funeral Chapel, Rock Port. Online condolences may be made at www.minterfuneralchapels.com.