Marion Joyce (Foss) Potter age 89 of Belle Fourche, died Wednesday, September 27, 2023 at Belle Estate in Belle Fourche.
A celebration of Marion’s life will take place 11am Monday, October 2, 2023 at the Belle Fourche Global Methodist Church. Visitation will be held 4pm to 5:30pm on Sunday at Leverington Funeral Home of the Northern Hills in Belle Fourche, concluding with a prayer service at 5:30pm. Interment will take place 1pm Central Time, Tuesday at Oakridge Cemetery in Seneca SD, followed by a time of fellowship at the Seneca Community Center.
The funeral will be available to view live or following by clicking on the weblink below.
Marion was born September 2, 1934, the second daughter of Dave and Sylvia (Brozik) Foss. Marion grew up on the family farm near Hamill, SD. She attended country schools in her elementary years and then Winner High School where she graduated in 1952. She later attended Black Hills State Teachers College and graduated in 1954 with her teaching certificate. After college, she worked in Denver and Albuquerque as a secretary, and then she taught in rural schools in Tripp County and in Iona, SD.
In 1954 she first met Willard Potter, a SDSM&T student, at a Black Hills State track meet. They were united in marriage on June 25, 1960 in Winner, South Dakota. To this union were born two sons and three daughters: Lee, Bruce, Joyce, Reva, and Diann.
Following their marriage, Willard worked as an Civil Engineer and his career took the Potter family to several towns, including Pierre, Selby, and Aberdeen. From 1979 to 2010, they lived near Warner, and following his retirement, Willard and Marion moved to their home on Walworth Street in Belle Fourche where Marion resided until this September.
Marion grew up through the Depression and WWII years, and these experiences instilled in her the importance of thrift and creativity, including a love of the finer things in life such as home-grown and home-canned fruits and vegetables; homemade fashion; family gatherings with music and card games; traveling between the pages of countless good books; play, crafts, and songs with children; nurturing lifelong friendships; and providing a listening, caring ear to others. She was a hardworking daughter and her father’s helper on the farm, a quiet, kind older cousin, a devoted niece, a true partner in marriage, and a mother and grandmother who was forever the teacher and a champion for children.
She was proud of her family and loved her grandchildren very much. Her quiet strength, quick humor, and faith will be greatly missed. Marion is survived by her children, Joyce (Dean) Beck of Glenwood, MN; Lee (Darla) of Cheyenne WY, Reva (Terry Hoscheid) Potter of Belle Fourche, Diann (Don) Drew of Volga, SD; Bruce (Laura) of Garretson SD; 13 grandchildren, Gia and David (Alex) Beck; Logan and Ruth Potter; Spencer (Mackenzie), Nathan (Sentel), Kendal, and Conrad Schreier, and Nathan Hoscheid; Erin (Jon) Evenson and Rachel Drew; Eliza and Wyatt Potter; and nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband Willard, her parents, Dave and Sylvia; and her sister, Clara Jane.
