Martha (Powers) Marston

11 years ago

Martha (Powers) Marston

 SH Martha Marston OB2

 MARSTON, Martha (Powers), 89, PRESQUE ISLE, September 8, 2013. There will be a memorial reception on Wed., Sept. 11, at 3 p.m., at the Northeastland Hotel, Presque Isle.

     PRESQUE ISLE – Martha (Powers) Marston, a pioneering businesswoman and civic leader in Presque Isle, passed away peacefully on September 8, 2013, days after celebrating her 89th birthday with family and friends.
 SH Martha Marston OB1   Martha was born on August 27, 1924, in East Chapman, to Mary (Beaulieu) and Patrick Powers, the youngest child and only girl of seven. Her and her brothers, Thomas, Louis, Justin, Edmund, James, Peter, all studied in the one-room schoolhouse in East Chapman. She went on to complete high school at St. Agatha’s convent.
    Martha initially worked at the Base, then in Connecticut, and then back here for the potato industry. She met and married Russell Marston, and after being widowed bought a local card/book/magazine store and the magazine wholesale distributor business for Aroostook County from her mother-in-law, Isabel Marston. She was one of the first women to own and run a business on Main Street in Presque Isle and quickly built it into a success, running 2 stores and a county-wide paperback, magazine, and newspaper wholesale distributorship. Her thriving Hallmark card, gift, book and magazine store was a focal point for the community for many years. Her entrepreneurship provided jobs to family members, veterans, as well as community members for nearly 50 years.
    Martha was a very engaged civic leader and committed to improving her community. She was a leader in the Main Street beautification committee, a passionate member of the school board, and a leading voice for the Housing Authority among other endeavors.
    Martha is survived by her daughter, Pamela Marston (Upadhyaya) and her son-in-law, Punya Upadhyaya; two sisters-in-law; and many nieces and nephews.
    There will be a memorial reception on Wednesday, September 11, at 3 p.m., at the Northeastland Hotel on Main Street, Presque Isle. Those who wish may make donations to the fund named for her nephews, the Dale and Christopher Powers Scholarship Fund c/o Northern Maine Community College, 33 Edgemont Drive, Presque Isle ME 04769 in lieu of flowers.