Lynn Marcus

Lynn Day Marcus, 69, a Vietnam Veteran, passed away on Saturday, July 7, 2012 after fighting a courageous battle with cancer. Lynn was born on April 20, 1943 in Amarillo, Texas. He attended Catholic School from Elementary through High School, then attended Amarillo Jr. College, skipped a semester, and was called to serve his country, so he joined the Navy. He was sent to Viet Nam and when he returned to Amarillo he graduated from Amarillo Jr. College with a BA degree. As a boy, he worked on the family farm where he lived with his Grandmother, Loretta Day, and his Grandfather, Glenn Morris Day. He worked for Santa Fe Railroad, he was in Pharmacy Dispensery in an Amarillo Hospital after leaving Viet Nam and returning to Texas. Most of his life he was involved in Sales. He managed a Jewelry Store in the late 70's and early 80's and then started his own business as a Jewelry Manufacturing Company. When he closed the Jewelry business he went back to Sales. He was a Navy Corpsman stationed in DaNang, Viet Nam and assigned to the Naval Hospital. He later was assigned to the US Naval Support Civic Action Team. A group of about 5 men that lived among the

Vietnamese to establish friendship and goodwill between the US and the Vietnamese people. Lynn offered medical services, delivering babies, caring for the Vietnamese and dispensing medications to them. When it was time for Lynn to be discharged from the Navy he applied for and was granted a "Special Request" that would allow him to stay in Viet Nam longer so that he could take a 2 year old baby girl with a congenital heart disease to the US for Open Heart Surgery. The child had been given less than one year to live. The mother was unable to come with the child, so Lynn traveled with the baby girl to her final destination in California. He received a Certificate of Commendation and there are many accolades from his shipmates and the Vietnamese people who worked with him "stating that they all hold him in the highest regard". He also received The National Defense Service Medal , The Vietnamese Service Medal, A Bronze Star, A Vietnam Campaign Medal and a Navy Unit Commendation Medal. This is the kind of man Lynn Day Marcus was, an intelligent, kind, gentle, thoughtful, loving, giving human being. He had a wonderful sense of humor and it was very rare to ever see him angry. He marched to a different drum and at his own pace. He was usually late and I called him my absent minded professor, very smart, very intelligent, but very forgetful, keys, glasses, hearing aids, cell phones, etc. We all loved him, accepted it, and kidded him about it. When God created Lynn he threw away the mold. His mother, Dorothy, said once that Lynn was so much like her own father, never in a rush, and that the only time she ever saw her father in a hurry was when their chicken house caught on fire!! He loved the outdoors and the water and loved to go fishing, camping, traveling, he was interested in plants and gardening and he loved good food and dining out! He was preceded in death by his Grandfather, Glenn Morris Day, Grandmother, Loretta Day and his Mother, Dorothy Day- Marcus-Byars-Anderson. He is survived by his loving wife, Melba Whitley-Marcus, son, Eddie Whitley, daughter, Tammy Whitley, brother, Larry Byars and wife Kathy, Aunt Ann, and many loving cousins, nieces, nephews, and numerous loving family and friends.