Myrl Victoria Shelly ^{1 2}

   Cause of her death was Stroke.¹

  General Notes:

Held office in a number of civic groups active in the order of eastern star member of daughters of Am. Rev. No. 393001; active in children's activities
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(Source: Brøderbund WFT Vol. 1, Ed. 1, tree #3823)

Myrl's plain people heritage meant a lot to her and she had a warm affection for her Pennsylvania relatives. Visiting them when she could and hosting them when she could. When she was 4 and her brother 6, they both had diphtheria and her brother died. A careless acquaintance of the family said in her presence, "too bad it was the boy." It caused a hurt that she carried with her entire life. A second childhood illness [undiagnosed, digestive] kept her out of school for a year. She remembered that it was the gift of a chocolate rabbit from the milkman that was the beginning of her recovery. She met her would be husband through a church friend, Murle Sanders. Murle was the wife of Deward's 1st cousin, Albert. Albert and Murle were their wedding attendants. The couple lived with her parents until Deward graduated from Ohio State University, then they moved to the farm and lived with his parents. His grandfather, John Bud Curry, was a part of that household as well. Myrl felt a closeness to him. When close quarters threatened the new marriage, Bud suggested that the couple move into his home on the farm across the road. The home contained much of the grandfather 's furniture, but no electricity or running water that Myrl had always had. The young bride made the best of the situation, learning to use and care for kerosene lights, pump and carry water, use the outhouse (outside toilet), wash by hand, iron with flat irons heated on a wood stove, etc. She worked very hard. She raised a big garden, strawberries and all types of vegetables. She canned hundreds of cans of vegetables, meat, and fruit. For lack of money during the depression, she made all of her children's clothes sometimes from feed sacks and cast off coats from her mother-in-law. Still she found time to be active in the neighborhood women's group, the Farm Bureau, the Extension Service, the Eastern Star, and her children's activities. Baby sitters were never a consideration. Myrl took the children everywhere with her. For recreation the couple played cards with friends. Again the children went along. About once a year they took the family to lake Erie for the day. When debt forced Deward to work full time away from home, Myrl took over full responsibility for the farm and the family. During this time, her son, Charles, was burned severely and hospitalized for 3 months.

In 1941, Deward gave up farming. He moved the family to upper Sandusky, and life became easier for Myrl. Deward, now known as Charlie, was at home to share responsibilities and the children could walk to school and to most of their activities. That lasted 5 years. In 1946, Charlie gave up his job and they bought the local greenhouse. Once more they were in business together. He took care of the growing and the physical plant. She took care of the floral designs, billing, ordering, bill payment, and accounting. After 2 years, they sold the business at a profit and Charlie went back on the road for Farms Home Administration. In 1950, Charlie was promoted to the state office and the family moved to Columbus. By then, only the youngest daughter was at home and she attended OSU. Myrl enjoyed being close to her family, her mother, brother, sister, and 2 other children. Myrl was an exceptional mother. She loved and was very supportive of her children, but she insisted that they take responsibility at a very young age. She took time to teach them the tasks she expected them to perform, and she expected the work to be done right. She encouraged them to broaden themselves with music, 4H, scouts, etc., and was always there to provide her time and transportation. She expected them to make their own decisions and to take responsibility for those decisions. They were to be the best they could be, responsible, self sufficient, and contributing to society. What better preparation for life?

In 1954, Charlie joined the Agency for International Development. He and Myrl took their first assignment in Egypt. What a change for Myrl. Now her children were reared and she had a houseboy for cooking, cleaning, etc. Always eager to learn, she learned all she could about the country, the culture, the people, the rich history, and a little Arabic. She enjoyed their colleagues, joined the wives club, and did volunteer work. In 1956, they were transferred to Brazil. She didn't like it as well because it lacked the depth of history and culture. Nonetheless, she learned all she could about it. Here she became interested in gems. She studied and collected them in the rough and in finished jewelry. Much to her family 's delight, she brought pieces home to each of them. During her eight years in Brazil, she was brought home twice on sick leave, once for gall bladder surgery and once for uterine cancer. Both procedures were successful, and each time she returned to Brazil.

In 1964, they returned permanently to the states settling in Westerville near family. Once more she made new friends and became an active part of the community. During Charlie's illness, 1965-1975, she challenged him to take proper care of himself, to do all that he could, and not to feel sorry for himself. In 1978, widowed for 3 years, she moved into a retirement apartment in Westerville. She enjoyed being around people on a full time basis and enjoyed managing her investments. After suffering a couple of heart attacks, her daughter-in-law came out from Columbus weekly to help with the wash, the cleaning, and the shopping. In 1984, she suffered a massive stroke and died in Riverside Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. She is buried in Nova, Ashland County, Ohio.
(Written by daughter, Pauline Curry Beinbrech)

A couple of additional things that I remember about mother was that she had a great love of the arts. She always encouraged us to listen and enjoy classical music. She took us to concerts and also saw to it that we had the opportunity to attend the symphony and opera. She also painted pottery as a young woman and canvases in later years. Much to the delight of her children she shared her creations. Each one has several examples of her work in their homes.
(Additional comments written by daughter, Mary Jane Curry Maurich)
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  Death Notes:

Name: Myrl Curry
Given Name: Myrl
Surname: Curry
Event Type: Death
Event Date: Feb 1984
Event Place: Franklin, Ohio
Event Place (Original): Franklin, Ohio
Age: 83
Birth Date: 24 Feb 1901

Citing this Record
"United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JRN4-7ML : 4 December 2020), Myrl Curry, Feb 1984; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
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  Noted events in her life were:

• She worked as a Mother, Homemaker. ¹

• She worked as a Secretary. ¹

• She worked as a Telephone Operator. ¹

• She was educated at Bliss Business College in 1919.

Myrl married Charles Deward Curry, son of Amos Orlando Curry and Minerva Smith, on 16 February 1924 in , Franklin County, OH.¹ (Charles Deward Curry was born on 7 November 1901 in Nova, OH ^{1 3} and died on 28 September 1975 in Columbus, Franklin County, OH ¹.). The cause of his death was Amoeba Progression.¹