Marcilee Ann Wilson Bierlein (Marcie), who earned four academic degrees, developed careers in government, the private sector and academia and still found time to raise a family and lead several diverse civic groups, died June 1, 2024. She was 81.
Marcie was born in September of 1942 in Winfield, Kansas. Her mother Audrey separated from her father, Harold Wilson, when she was a toddler, and married Air Force pilot Kenneth Menzie, whom she forever referred to as “Daddy.” She and her younger brother, Mark, grew up between air bases in Denver, Colorado, Tampa, Florida, Roswell, New Mexico and finally Portsmouth, New Hampshire where she graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1960.
Marcie then attended the University of Kansas, where she was a member of the Kappa Chapter of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, and where she met physics PhD student John Bierlein. They married on May 30, 1964 five days after she earned a bachelor’s degree, with double majors in Sociology and Psychology. The couple stayed in Lawrence, Kansas while she continued her education and graduated with a master’s degree in Child Development in 1967. They relocated to Wilmington, Delaware later that year.
While raising two children, Marcie was also very active in numerous local organizations and government, acting as president of the League of Women Voters, and as vice chairman of the DART commission in the mid-1970s.
In 1976, Marcie then earned a master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Delaware, specializing in Personnel/Labor Relations, and began a career with the State of Delaware as Administrative Assistant to the president of the New Castle County Council. She then moved to the Department of Labor, starting as Executive Assistant to the Secretary of Labor, then Director of the Division of Employment and Training, then Acting Secretary of Labor and finally as the State Personnel Director from 1985-1989.
Moving to the private sector in 1990, Marcie then worked at Heritage Cablevision (which later became Suburban Cable and finally Comcast Cable) as their Director of Human Resources from 1990-1997.
During this time, Marcie was appointed by then Governor Mike Castle to the New Castle County Vo-Tech Board of Education in 1992 where she served for nine years ending on June 30, 2001. In 1998 and 1999, Marcie also served as president of the Mental Health Association of Delaware.
After the sudden and tragic loss of her husband, John, in March 1996, she made the decision to go back to school at Drexel University, earning a master’s degree in Library and Information Science in 2000, and then worked as reference librarian at the Wharton School of Business, the Jenkins Law Library and at Widener Law School.
After finally retiring, she spent time volunteering with the Delaware Courts, as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), serving as a voice for children living in challenging environments. Her endless curiosity also led her to continue her extensive education at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Delaware during her retirement.
Along with a passion for both the Colorado Rockies and the American Southwest, Marcie also was especially devoted to her rescued Boston Terriers Buddy, Zippy, Rocco, Griffin, her beloved Bella, and to her patient and tolerant cat Cookie, all of whom she survived. An avid reader, Marcie participated in multiple local book groups, curating and cultivating an extensive collection of books over her lifetime. She had a passion for bakery cakes and frosting flowers, and rarely missed a day without her Starbucks grande nonfat cappuccino, not too wet, not too dry, with half a packet of raw sugar.
Marcie was preceded in death by her husband, John Bierlein, her brother, Mark Menzie, and her parents, Audrey and Ken Menzie. Survivors include her children Chris and Julie Bierlein, and her four grandchildren, Angharad and Theo Bierlein, and Emmett and Ivy Jackson.
A memorial service and celebration of life is planned for Saturday, September, 14 at 1:00 P.M. at the First Unitarian Church of Wilmington, 730 Halstead Rd, Wilmington, DE 19803. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Marcie’s memory to Faithful Friends of Delaware or to ILYA at the First Unitarian Church of Wilmington.
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