Marcia Morse Duncan, 92, of Gilbert, Arizona passed away peacefully at her home in Gilbert on Nov. 3, 2025.
Marcia was born on Aug. 10, 1933, to Thomas Weston Morse and Dorothy Seuss Morse in Marlboro, Massachusetts. After graduating high school from St. Ann’s Academy in Marlboro, she studied elementary education at Colby Junior College in New Long, New Hampshire; Lesley College in Cambridge, Massachusetts; and Mt. St. Mary College in Hooksett, New Hampshire.
She married Stuart Blackwell Duncan on Aug. 18, 1956, in Marlboro. They were married for 40 years until Stuart passed away on Aug. 8, 1997. Marcia is survived by a niece, Susan Woods, of Amsterdam, the Netherlands and cousins on the east coast.
Marcia and Stuart left New England and moved to Colorado in 1968. Even though she left New England, New England never left her as illustrated by her speaking accent and her sensible approach to the world.
Her time in Colorado was spent teaching two generations of Aspen first-graders and helping her husband write how-to books on camping, experiencing the outdoors and carpentry. When she retired from the Aspen School District, they moved to Gunnison for thriving second careers as bookstore owners. They owned The Book Worm from 1992-2008.
Marcia moved to Ajo, Arizona, in 2008 after visiting friends and finding that the community was full of friendly and interesting people and she quickly became involved in a whirlwind of activities.
She gleaned a great deal of satisfaction from making an impact on the communities in which she lived and made significant contributions to them. Most recently in Ajo she served on the Ajo school board for 10 years, was the exalted ruler of the Elks Lodge and was involved with the Ajo Council for the Fine Arts and the Reading Seed program. In Gunnison she served on the school board, the Chamber of Commerce and Gunnison County Partners. Additionally, she was a member of the League of Women Voters, Delta Kappa Gamma and past president of the Junior League of Concord. She was awarded the annual citizen awards in Ajo and Gunnison.
She was passionate about teaching, cooking, dogs and books. Her homes, including her apartment in Gilbert, were all located on beautiful pieces of land where she could see the animals, hear the birds and watch the seasons change.
A celebration of life will be held at the Elks Lodge in Ajo on Dec. 7, 2025.
