Opal Eileen Marley, 85

Opal Eileen Marley, 85, of Sandpoint, Idaho, went to join her husband Clyde in the arms of Jesus on July 19, 2005.

Visitation for friends and family will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, July 21, 2005, at Coffelt's Moon Chapel in Sandpoint. Funeral services will be conducted at 2:30 p.m., Friday, July 22, at the Landmark Missionary Baptist Church, 410 S. Florence Ave., in Sandpoint. Private burial services will follow at Pinecrest Cemetery.

Opal was born Sept. 18, 1919, in Gruver, Iowa, to William and Nellie May Van Horrsen Martin. She attended Gruver High School, where she played basketball and a version of softball, known as "kitten ball."

On March 18, 1939, she married Clyde W. Marley in Estherville, Iowa, and left the Iowa cornfields for a new home in Idaho on that same day. She and her husband settled in Laclede and later moved to Sandpoint, where they were co-owners of Sandpoint IGA, Sandpoint Ice and Fuel and North Idaho Warehouse Market.

Her faith in God and her family were the center of Opal's life. She played piano at the Sandpoint Fellowship Church for years. She loved flowers, bird watching and card playing.

She is survived by sons, A. Robert Marley; Randy (Clare) Marley; and Lance (Kim) Marley, all of Sandpoint; grandchildren Jennifer Nix, Nathan Marley, Akela and Brittany Marley; and great grandchildren, Nikai and Donovan Nix; a sister, Maytha (Ed) Madison of Estherville; brother, Argil (Marian) Martin of Sarasota, Florida; sister-in-law Carolyn Martin of Estherville, and numerous nieces and nephews. Opal was preceded in death by her husband, Clyde; son, Warren; her parents, two sisters, Leah Morgan of Sandpoint and Ardis Carey of Estherville; and brother, Vernon Martin of Estherville.

Coffelt Funeral Services is in charge of arrangements.