Milburn Maurice Marrow, 1933-2022
IMB Photo
Milburn Maurice Marrow, an International Mission Board missionary emeritus who shared the gospel in Tanzania, died April 3, 2022. He was 89.
Marrow was born Feb. 21, 1933, in Cedar Lane, Texas, to the late Homer Marrow and Bonnie Howze Marrow. He graduated from Bay City (Texas) High School and received the Bachelor of Arts from the University of Corpus Christi, Texas, and the Master of Divinity from Golden Baptist Theological Seminary, Mill Valley, California.
On March 12, 1955, Maurice married Lois Venable, a fellow student at Corpus Christi who shared his decision to become an international missionary. Maurice wrote when seeking missionary appointment that he had made a public decision responding to a call to preach while a senior in high school. During college, he wrote that many things happened that made him reach a decision to serve in missions abroad.
After completing college, the Marrows served as summer missionaries in Utah. Their experiences led them to want to serve in missions in the western United States and attend Gold Gate Seminary.
While attending seminary and ministering in several California churches, Maurice and Lois felt called to serve on the mission field in Africa. The Foreign Mission Board (now International Mission Board) appointed them as missionaries to Tanzania, where they served about 30 years doing evangelism before retiring and returning to Texas.
Maurice and Lois were married for 65 years before her death in 2020.
Maurice is survived by his sons, Rick Marrow (Melodie) of Baytown, Texas, David Marrow (Joy) of Alvin, Texas, and Jon Marrow (Vicki) of McAlester, Olahoma; daughter, Jeanette Nelson of Sweeney, Texas; brother, Homer Lee Marrow of Heavener, Oklahoma; sisters Sally Strong of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Charlotte Ruegsegger of Heavener; 13 grandchildren; 29 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild.
Funeral services were held April 6, 2022, at Cedar Lane Baptist Church, Bay City, Texas, with burial in Sweeny (Texas) Cemetery.
Read an obituary here.