Marsha “Sam” Lee (Buell) Wingrove was a tiny but mighty force to be reckoned with from the day of her birth on September 22, 1952 until her passing on June 11, 2023.
From her childhood days in Monongahela, PA , or “The Valley,” she was surrounded by many cousins. Her parents, Doris (Baxter) and Harry Lee Buell were each from large families, subsequently, most of Sam’s friends and classmates were cousins. No one, however, knew Sam quite like her Cousin Vickie Baxter Shurgott (New Eagle).
Upon graduating from high school (Monongahela), Sam studied at California University of PA before deciding to move to a career in nursing. She’d tell stories of working in the operating room alongside talented doctors at Divine Providence Hospital in Pittsburgh. It was during this time, however, that Sam met the love of her life.
In fall of 1975, Ralph told his mother, Wilma (Ringer) Wingrove, “I met the woman I’m going to marry.” And he did. Ralph and Sam were married December 6, 1975. An Active member of the United States Air Force, Ralph was traveling the country to complete his enlistment, and Sam loved the cross-country adventure. From Denver, CO to Newport News, VA, Sam would easily find work at hospitals the moment she moved to a new town.
The couple made decisions and stuck to them. When they decided to start a family, Sam made the proposal that would change the trajectory of their lives. Ralph would lay the foundation, and Sam would care for the home and the children. And that is what they both did.
The best and brightest legacy that exists is the love that Sam had for her daughters, Amy, Leslie, Natalie and Ryan.
To say that family was her life, would be an understatement. She rarely complained, found fault or searched for sympathy when the days of mothering were as thankless as possible. Her friends and other moms in Le Leche League would offer strength as she trudged through those days with head held high. She also found support from many organizations for youth in the Indiana community like YMCA and PTA.
Bold and sometimes brash, you knew where you stood with her. She was kind, strong and opinionated. She was a woman who would dance when she wanted to, sing at the top of her lungs even if a grandchild begged “‘Mimi, please stop!“ She’d sew costumes for school plays, sit on the floor and play or color in coloring books, she’d chauffeur four girls in four different directions, mostly with a smile on her face- all of the daughters knew that they had to be in “designated time and designated place” or there would most definitely not be a smile on her face when she found them.
Maybe you met Sam while she was a 4-H leader for a dairy goat or horse club. Possibly it was as a cheerleading coach or booster. She was a constant in the audience and backstage at many, many theater productions. She’d be seen on the bus as it bounced towards field trips for school, voicing concerns at PTA meetings, leading a girl scout troop or shuttling someone to and from an athletic event. Maybe you met her in one of her leadership roles as a volunteer, or at the YMCA when she advocated and helped to start a teen center. She was an entrepreneur, too. Maybe she poured you a cup of coffee at the Indiana Newsstand on Philadelphia Street. Or maybe you met her when you were a mom too, and became her friend because of your children. She was an ever present force to be reckoned with that many people, and especially a woman, mother and wife that other women admired.
Somehow, through the organized chaos of raising daughters, while Ralph traveled for work and built his business, she did find time for things she loved.
She loved reading and would devour a book in hours to the amazement of friends. She was constantly studying. From learning to run a small farm to learning about world religions, she was an ever evolving student of life. A member of a book club of one form or another, Sam traveled the world with friends she’d meet. From England to Vegas, these highly intelligent women were a sort of sisterhood to Sam. While reading may have involved other women, one of the passions she shared with her beloved, Ralph, was gardening.
Much like their relationship, they enjoyed setting up the garden together. Deciding where it would be, how large and what they would plant. Ralph would prepare the area – till the soil, prepare it for planting, and Sam would plant and cultivate and harvest. Sam learned to can and preserve foods, and passed those skills on to her daughters. Her corn and green beans are a family favorite. The garden and ultimately serving the food to her family is what soothed her soul.
While she may be gone from here; Sam, Mom, Mimi – will never be far. Her spirit and fight are deeply rooted from the seeds that she planted. And for that we are grateful.
Sam is survived by her husband, Ralph Wingrove (Indiana). Her daughters; Amy Wingrove, (Wilmington, NC), Leslie Yount and her husband, Troy Yount (Indiana), Natalie Scott and her husband, David Scott, (Pittsburgh), and Ryan Wingrove and her husband, Josh Barber (Indiana). Her beautiful grandchildren are Olivia and Alison Stone, Tyler and Lyla Yount, and Dawson and Adalie Scott.
She was preceded by her mother, Doris (Baxter) Buell, her father, H. Lee Buell, and her mother-in-law, Wilma (Ringer) Wingrove. As well as many beloved Aunts, Uncles and cousins.
The family will receive friends on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, from 2 – 4 and 6 – 8 pm, as well as Thursday, June 15, 2023, from 2 – 4 and 6 – 8 pm, in the Bowser Minich Funeral Home, 500 Ben Franklin Road S, Indiana, PA 15701; where a Funeral Service will be held at 12 Noon, on Friday, June 16, 2023. Interment to follow in Oakland Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family has established “The Marsha Wingrove Memorial Fund” at S&T Bank (724) 349-0599 to establish a scholarship which will benefit a high school senior beginning with the 2024 graduating class.
To send an online condolence to the family, please visit www.bowserminich.com.
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