On Saturday, January 16, Marilyn Ann (Hauser) Castelli of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, passed away peacefully ending her difficult battle with COVID-19.
Marilyn was born on November 3, 1947, in Memphis, Tennessee. She graduated from Lipscomb University in 1968 with a major in English. She earned her Master’s of Education in Reading from Middle Tennessee State University in 1992.
For 15 years, Marilyn was a beloved English teacher at Oakland High School, noted by many as their favorite teacher. A faithful member of North Boulevard Church of Christ, she shared her love of teaching as a Sunday School instructor for young people. Marilyn also enjoyed giving back to her community, especially through Charity Circle, where she served as president among many other roles. Marilyn was also a member of the Linebaugh Library Board.
Throughout her life, Marilyn continued to pursue her love of music and learning. She shared her beautiful voice with many choral groups including Middle Tennessee Choral Society, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church choir, and North Boulevard Praise Team. Marilyn was the current president of Craddock Club, a 100-year-old study club. Members always looked forward to her papers for their well-researched and interesting topics.
Marilyn was preceded in death by her parents Dr. Fred and Ann (Turrentine) Hauser and her brother Fred Hauser Jr. She is survived by her devoted husband, Larry Castelli, and her children Joe Castelli (Susan) of Pueblo, Colorado, Tom Castelli (Kristen) of Nashville, and Maria Knox (Kerry) of Murfreesboro, and her grandchildren Maggie and Cate Castelli and Grady and Ginny Knox.
A private celebration of Marilyn’s life will be held at Woodfin Chapel on Friday, January 22.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to Charity Circle of Murfreesboro (https://www.charitycirclemboro.org), North Boulevard Church of Christ (https://northboulevard.com), Oakland’s Mansion (https://www.oaklandsmansion.org) or the World Health Organization’s COVID-Solidarity Response Fund (https://covid19responsefund.org/en/).
The family also requests that all who loved her honor Marilyn by wearing their masks, getting the vaccine, and social distancing. An online guestbook is available for the Castelli family at www.woodfinchapel.com.
