August 26, 2026

Linn County News

Published September 2, 2026

 

From the stockyards of Kansas City to the 14,000-foot peaks of Colorado, Marv Marshall charged his way through life leaving memories and impressions with everyone he came in contact with.

Born in Mound City, Kan., on the Fourth of July, 1937, Marv was the youngest of two boys. His parents were Edwin and Seramae Marshall. His father was a train fireman, and his mother the Registrar of Deeds in Mound City, Kan. They were third generation mid-westerners of German descent, who first came to this country in the early 1700s. John Marshall, the first Justice of the Supreme Court, was a distant relative. The Marshall family founded Germanna, Virginia, in 1714.

Marvin Giffin Marshall died July 31, 2026, with his wife PJ by his side. He died just three weeks after his 89th birthday, and two days after their 48^th wedding anniversary.

Husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, Marv had truly lived the American Dream. Throughout his life he dedicated himself to his family. He had an enviable work ethic and lived by the rule, “Always do what you say you are going to do.”

In his youth, Marv attended Mound City High School and the University of Kansas. In his late teens, he joined the US Army as an alternative to jail time, after a hotly debated fireworks incident in his small hometown. He and his friends had raided a fireworks store at night and held their own fireworks show. Being a small town, everyone knew the culprits. At the time it was a serious situation, but over the years, Marv learned to laugh it off as, “youthful hijinks.”

Marv’s military years found him based at Fort Bliss Army Base, in El Paso, Texas, and in New Mexico. While in New Mexico, he was part of a team assigned to test long-range missiles at the White Sands Missile Range, the United States’ premier military weapons testing area, covering 3,200 square miles in the Southern New Mexico desert.

He served four years in the US Army before a back injury forced him to retire from active duty. Upon leaving the military, Marv began working in the stockyards of Kansas City and taking night classes at the University of Kansas, before joining Hallmark Cards as a traveling Midwest distributor.

After working for several years at Hallmark, Marv moved up the corporate ranks of this rapidly growing institution, establishing distribution centers throughout the Midwest.

During these years he distinguished himself as a promising young executive, which opened the door for him to join Hallmark’s newly developed real estate arm, Crown Center Redevelopment, located in the heart of Kansas City. It was at this time he met PJ, a tenant in the corporate office buildings Marv managed, starting their fifty-plus-year adventure together.

While there, he headed up Hallmark’s successful commercial real estate group, a professional team that attracted and managed First-Class Occupancy in Crown Center’s vibrant retail and corporate office buildings.

In 1981, Marv was recruited by multi-national developers to move to Houston as President of their Southern Region. There, he was responsible for building and managing large, high-rise office buildings, shopping centers and residential communities.

His development career culminated while serving as CEO at Bramalea, a Canadian firm and one of the largest development companies in North America. Marv served on multiple corporate and philanthropic boards.

As he moved from meager beginnings to a successful career, Marv remained humble, leading with discretion, earning admiration for his integrity and quiet determination. Those who knew and engaged with him recognize Marv’s legacy in the values he leaves behind: optimism, respect for others, loyalty, generosity and confidence.

During his lifetime he religiously committed to his physical wellbeing, working out or doing his “range of motion” just about every day until the very end. He climbed 41 (of the 54) 14,000-foot mountain peaks in Colorado, loved to sky dive, snow ski, scuba dive, white water raft, hunt and fish. He required at least one cross country road trip per year, enjoying one 6 months ago to meet his great-grandson, Marshall. Always up for another challenge, Marv and PJ bought a 39-foot Ericson sailboat, just to learn how to sail. Together, Marv and PJ traveled the world, including family in their escapades.

In “retirement” Marv founded Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc. with his wife PJ, a not-for-profit that, since 2006, has reforested more than 400,000 acres in the Mississippi River Basin and Gulf Coast, bringing environmental, social and economic benefits back to the region as part of his final legacy.

Marv was a devoted Kansas City Chiefs’ fan. His caring and generosity were largely shared anonymously, from putting hundred-dollar bills in Santa gloves for children in need, to donating to ongoing projects of the Mound City Kansas Historical Society. It was not unusual for Marv to personally cover medical and other costs of those in need. He made major contributions to many not-for-profits and institutions. Marv believed, and stated frequently, that he was selfishly the one who received the most benefit from this quiet manner of giving.

Marv was a loving, good and honest man. Marv’s proudest achievement was his family. He was preceded in death by his brother Evan “Joe” Marshall; step brother Gene Post (Mary Ann); and son Ed Marshall (Cindi).

He is survived by his wife PJ, of Easton, Maryland; and three children, Morgan Doran of Stuart, Fla., Taylor Marshall (Connor Plaga) of Waialua, Hawaii, and Max Marshall of Sneads Ferry, N.C. He is also survived by eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, along with the colleagues, partners and friends who had the privilege of knowing and working alongside him during his life.

Marv will be deeply missed by all who knew him.

The family asks that folks who want to honor and remember Marv should take an opportunity (big or small) to do good in the world, whether by helping a neighbor, encouraging a friend, or supporting someone in need.

Marv’s optimism, can-do attitude, and humble ability to lead by example will never be forgotten.

A Celebration of Life will be announced in the near future. Marv’s ashes will be spread at various locations significant to he and his family, and their many adventures together.