Marylee Mcelvany Lingle

Marylee McElvany Lingle 1940-2023

Marylee McElvany Lingle was born in Wichita Falls, Texas, on August 10, 1940, and died peacefully in her sleep at her home in Conroe, Texas, on August 6, 2023. She was the only child of Joseph Weldon McElvany and Gertha Scott, both born in Mansfield, Texas, and part of pioneering families from the region.

In 1979, Marylee married the love of her life, Robert Bruce Lingle, and quickly introduced him to her “Gypsy Soul.” Together they traveled all over the world and later, spent every summer with their beloved dog pack and their three grandchildren, with whom they wore out at least three campers and a motor home as they visited nearly every national park and monument between Texas and Alaska. In the early 1990s, she became a community activist when her grand-children’s community pool in the Timber Ridge-Timber Lakes subdivision was threatened with permanent closure. Her efforts rallied the neighborhood and were instrumental in preserving the facility still enjoyed by many today.

Marylee grew up in the Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas and graduated from Sunset High School in 1958. After graduation, she attended Draughon’s Business College and spent time living abroad in Giessen, Germany. When she returned to Dallas, she worked for Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV) during the early “space-race” of the 1960s. After her children were born, she was a devoted Girl Scout troop leader and Cub Scout den mother. She received her real estate license in 1975 and later became a licensed Texas Real Estate Broker. She worked for AVCO Property Management in Houston before relocating to the Spring-Conroe area where she worked for Century 21 and George Nacol Realty Company.

Marylee leaves behind to cherish her memory her best friend and husband Robert Bruce Lingle of Conroe; children Jami Durham of Galveston and Brian and Kim Dore of Houston; grandchildren Jerry Durham IV and James Durham of Austin and Elizabeth Ward of Houston plus three great-grandchildren- Liam Ward, Daniel Ward and Natalya Sowers. A proud Sunset High School alumni member and enthusiastic Facebook participant, she also leaves behind a close network of cousins and a legion of friends, both near and far, who will also dearly miss her.

Services for Marylee will be held Saturday morning, August 19th at 10:00am at Blessing Funeral Home in Mansfield. Burial will follow at Rehoboth Cemetery in Arlington.