Marguerite Carroll, 94, passed away on February 16, 2024, surrounded by family. She had been on hospice care in her home in Pleasant Grove, where she has lived for over 50 years since moving to Utah from Virginia in 1970.

Marguerite Anne Pearson was born on St. Valentine's Day in 1930 in Springfield, New Brunswick, Canada, the firstborn child of Percy Winston Pearson and Alice Lydia Reed.

Growing up on the family farm among family and the animals she loved was "the best childhood ever". She loved being outdoors and helping her father on the farm.

She received her nurses training at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal, and while there, met missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and was baptized. Her strong, unwavering faith got her through many challenging times.

After finishing her nurses training and becoming a Registered Nurse, she met and married George Philip Carroll. They had five children and later divorced.

She worked as a nurse at Bell Hospital in Williamsburg, VA for 10 years. After moving to Utah, she was a Public Health Nurse in the American Fork schools for 17 years and at Wasatch County Hospital on the weekends. She also worked at Mountain View and American Fork Hospitals, finishing her nursing career at Timpanogos Hospital, retiring at the age of 83.

Marguerite loved working in the yard, planting flowers, pulling weeds, and just being outdoors. She has always loved animals, taking in strays four-legged and two-legged. "Her door was always open".

Her greatest joy was her family. Her greatest heartbreak was losing her eldest son, Philip, who passed away in 2019 after a brief and sudden respiratory illness. Marguerite is survived by her four remaining children, Erin (Mark) Sanderson, Alpine, Anne, (Ridge) Gilmour, Ridgefield, WA, Paige, Pleasant Grove, and Nathan (Kerry), Lacey, WA, her brother Lawrence (Bud) Pearson, Sussex, New Brunswick, 17 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, Marguerite has requested donations to Utah Valley Animal Rescue in her name. https://www.uvar.us

Memorial services will be held on Monday, February 26 at 11:00, with a viewing Sunday, February 25 from 6:00-8:00 and before the service from 9:30-10:30. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 323 E 500 N Pleasant Grove, Utah

Life Sketch

Marguerite Anne Pearson was born on St. Valentine's Day in 1930 after a terrible ice storm (and that's really saying something in Belleisle Creek, New Brunswick). The frozen landscape of rural maritime Canada was extra cold that day, but the firstborn child of Percy Winston Pearson and Alice Lydia Reed Pearson had absolutely no problem melting their hearts. They were overjoyed with their new red-haired baby girl, Marguerite, or "Diddie" as they liked to call her.

A year later, Marguerite became big sister to Lillian June, and a few years after that, her brother Lawrence Alfred (Bud) Pearson - who still resides in New Brunswick - was born. Growing up on the family farm surrounded by horses, cattle, sheep, chickens, and beloved family pets was heaven for her. She would always rather be outside helping her father than inside learning how to "keep house."

Ice skating and playing hockey with her brother and cousins were her favorite winter activities. She loved to recount the memory of walking down to the frozen pond in her boots, carrying her skates. After skating as long as she could, she would take off her skates and put her frozen boots on and walk home. Despite being in tears from the pain of frozen feet, her mother helped her warm her feet each time and then she did it all over again the next day.

She loved enjoying nature in the beautiful rural maritime countryside. This is just one of many warm memories of a happy childhood she always spoke of with affection. When asked about her childhood favorites she mentioned homemade ice cream, reading by lamplight in the winter, listening to the Grand Ole Opry and Sunday baseball games on the radio, and being in the pasture, to name a few. She especially loved horses and driving the team as she helped her father on the farm and on logging trips.

Marguerite graduated from Sussex High School in 1947 and then completed a First-Class Teaching Certificate at the University of New Brunswick in Frederickton. Post-war Canada assigned teaching students to rural outposts where kids hadn't had teachers since the war. Marguerite taught grade seven for some time at Belleisle Regional High School. Her dream had been to become a veterinarian. Even as a small child, her father would bring home injured animals and she would nurse them back to health. She knew her family could not afford to send her to veterinary school, so she turned to nursing.

She was soon accepted into the prestigious nursing school at Royal Victoria Hospital, associated with McGill University in Montreal, Canada where she trained for three years to earn a Registered Nursing Diploma. She paid $25 tuition, a $125 uniform fee, and room and board were provided. Her children have vivid memories of her carefully laundering her uniform; turning and pinning her very distinctive starched cap and donning a very smart navy blue wool cape. These were made in unique styles specific to Registered Nursing Graduates of the "Royal Vic" and a point of pride to Marguerite for many years in her career.

One day, while returning to her dorm from a movie with friends, Marguerite met missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints who were holding a street meeting. When she heard the story of Joseph Smith, she just knew it was true. She was baptized a member soon after. This decision enriched her life and blessed her family until the end. Her strong, unwavering faith got her through many challenging times.

Soon after graduation, she got a job at the hospital in Sussex, New Brunswick. While at a dance, she met George Philip Carroll, a Drum Sergeant in the Royal Canadian Black Watch who would eventually become her husband and the father of her five children. Together they moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where George finished up his tour of duty and Philip and Erin were born. They then moved to Arlington, Virginia, where George was stationed at Fort Myer to help establish the Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps. While there, Marguerite gave birth to Anne and Nathan. Marguerite went back to nursing part time at Bell Hospital after a move to Williamsburg, where Paige was born.

In 1970, after George left the family, Marguerite bravely sold almost everything she had, bought six one-way plane tickets to Salt Lake City, and moved with her five children to Pleasant Grove, Utah. Once there, she went to work as a Utah County public health nurse and also took on a part time job at Wasatch County Hospital on weekends. Despite her demanding work schedule, she was very supportive of her children and somehow managed to never miss a sporting event or anything else they were involved in.

Marguerite loved to celebrate Halloween and created fun memories for her children. When told that she was the reason her children loved Halloween so much, she responded that it was her mother who made Halloween so fun for her when she was growing up. So, it is a family heritage to love Halloween!

She continued to work as a nurse at Mountain View, Timpanogos, and American Fork hospitals in Utah - and a brief detour in Colorado - over the next several decades. Marguerite finished her 63-year nursing career at Timpanogos Hospital, retiring in 2013 at the age of 83.

Marguerite always loved working in her yard. It was her favorite hobby and way to relax. A best-loved activity was visiting the various plant nurseries in the area every spring to look for plants, bulbs, and seeds. She was always happy to take you on a tour around the yard to show you the varied plants and flowers she nurtured so carefully. She served as a Temple Square Missionary, working with the flowers, for three years. She also served in the Mount Timpanogos Temple as a laundry worker for three years, which she really enjoyed.

She loved spending her retirement years working in her garden, reading, and spending time with her pets, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, supporting them in their various activities. Her greatest joy was her family. Her greatest heartbreak was losing her eldest son, Philip, who passed away in 2019 after a brief and sudden respiratory illness. Marguerite is survived by her four remaining children, 17 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren.

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