On October 22, 2024, Marcella “Marcy” Aitken closed her beautiful blue eyes for the last time in this world, and passed peacefully into the next. We hope when she got there, she was greeted by a sea of people she loved, especially her husband, Joe, and her beloved mother Julia. Marcy was 91 years old, and for most of those nine decades, she lived her life exactly how she wanted to – with humor, purpose, passion, and an unbreakable strength of character.
Marcy and Joe grew up two streets apart in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, and after they married in 1956, they were rarely two feet apart. He was quiet and reserved, a warm fire that beckoned you in; and she, an explosion of light and energy. They made each other whole. From their long and enduring love came eight children, sixteen grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
Marcy and Joe were parishioners of St. Mary Magdalen and lived in Sharpley for most of their married life. She went back to work after their youngest started kindergarten, and made Archmere Academy her home away from home for nearly 40 years. She was a beloved teacher, coach, and counselor, known for her losing basketball seasons, her raucous pep rallies, easy “A” health quizzes, and her absolute willingness to help any student or family, anywhere, at any time, day or night. She loved the school and all it stood for, and the Marcy Aitken Gymnasium on campus —named in her honor — will remain an enduring testament to the legacy she built and the lives she touched.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 52 years, Joseph W. Aitken; her brother Albert, and her parents, Julia and Albert Sr.
Marcy is survived by her eight children: Michael (Mary); Susan Mascioli (Chris); Mark (Stacy); Mary Currie (Randy); Kathy Abbott (Bill); Patty Signora (Paul); Paul (Maria) and Margaret Haggerty (Chris); her sister Katherine Helms; daughter-in-law Trish Aitken, sixteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; and her cat, Freddie.
In the final chapter of her life, as her body and mind began to give way, Marcy’s children cared for her with the same love and compassion that she had shown them for so many years. It wasn’t always easy, but they saw it as an honor—an opportunity to repay, in some small way, what she had given them throughout their lives.
Her family would like to thank her caregivers, especially Dr. Ina Li and the staffs at Cornerstone and Harbor Chase.
A visitation will be held on Monday, October 28, 2024, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon at St. Mary Magdalen Church, 9 Sharpley Road, Wilmington, Delaware. The eulogy and Mass of Christian burial will follow at 12:15 p.m. at St. Mary Magdalen. Interment will be held at St. Joseph’s on the Brandywine Cemetery immediately following the mass.
Marcy was never a huge fan of flowers — she never really saw the point. If you’d like to make a donation in her honor, please consider the Limen House(www.limenrecovery.org/donate/ or Archmere Academy(www.archmereacademy.com/giving/ways-to-give)
We ask that you honor her memory by reaching out to someone who needs a hand, a ride to an AA meeting, a pat on the back, or a good laugh in the middle of a tough day. She’d like that. And then, she’d ask of you just one more thing: “Go and Make it a Great Day!”
For online condolence visit: www.mccreryandharra.com
