Memorial service for Marcia Lee (Nichols) Wright will be Wednesday, January 4, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. at the Family Life Church in Gillette, Wyoming, with Celebrant Rachel Nava officiating.
Mrs. Wright, age 72, of Wright, Wyoming died Thursday, December 22, 2011, at her home after losing her year and a half long battle with cancer.
Mrs. Wright was born June 26, 1939, in Casper, Wyoming, to Marcus R. and Margaret L. (Barnett) Nichols. She graduated from Natrona County High School in Casper, Wyoming in 1957.
Marcia received her Bachelor of Arts in education from the University of Wyoming and her Master of Library Science from Denver University eventually focusing on Children’s Literature. She had many fond memories of the people she met and friends she made while being the Librarian at Buffalo High School in the early 1960’s.
While in Buffalo she met a pilot and flight instructor named Dale L. Wright. They were married December 31, 1965 and eventually moved to Casper. Mrs. Wright served as the Assistant Librarian at Casper College from 1966-1969. Moving to the Wright area in 1970, she started a long relationship with the Campbell County School District being the Librarian at Twin Spruce Junior High and a Consultant and Librarian for Sage Valley Junior High when it opened. In 1985, she took a step in a new direction and became the Associate Librarian for the Page Public Library in Page, Arizona.
Later in 1985, she accepted the Reference Librarian position at the Campbell County Public Library (CCPLS) in Gillette, Wyoming. In 1990, she became the Director of the CCPLS retiring from that position in 2003. She was proud of her accomplishments at CCPLS but always maintained that they were not her accomplishments but those of a well-trained, enthusiastic staff that had the support of an active board. She believed heavily in intellectual freedom and upholding the Library Bill of Rights. In 2003, she was awarded the SIRS/WLA Intellectual Freedom Award.
Over the years she was very active, serving on committees, boards and councils in her professional and personal life. BPW Woman of Achievement – 1997, Vision 20/20, GALI graduate 1992, Lasting Legacy Park Committee, Wyoming Library Association, Mountain Plains Library Association, Public Library Association, American Library Association, SHRM, Campbell County Chamber of Commerce, Wright Area Chamber of Commerce, 1996 Boss of the Year, Eastern Star Member for 54 years, and Phi Delta Kappa, Chi Omega, and Southern Campbell County Centennial Committee to name a few. She enjoyed art of all forms. In 2007, she helped purchase the statue “Puddle Jumper”, now located near the Children’s Developmental Service Building on 4J Road.
She also purchased the statue “Good Ride Cowboy” in 2007 and placed it in the Wright Branch Library. Mrs. Wright was a curious soul always asking questions to better understand what she didn’t know. She loved to read books of all kinds. She read and knew a lot of Wyoming history. She enjoyed traveling, whether it was flying with her family, taking a train, a boat, or a good road trip with a friend. She enjoyed camping in the Big Horns and practicing her hand at Dutch oven cooking. After retiring in 2003, she started wintering in Wickenburg, Arizona, volunteering her time and knowledge at the Desert Caballeros Western Museum.
Marcia is survived by her husband, Dale L Wright of Wright, Wyoming, daughter, Nolene L Wright (Shawn Tranel) of Wright, Wyoming, her sister, Margo (Mike) Coughlin of Cheyenne, Wyoming, along with four nieces and two nephews.