Marilyn Lewis

Marilyn Lewis
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 147th district
In office January 2, 1979 – November 30, 1982
Preceded by	G. Sieber Pancoast
Succeeded by	Raymond Bunt
Personal details
Born	(1931-07-19)July 19, 1931[1] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	December 7, 2020(2020-12-07) (aged 89) Lansdale, Pennsylvania
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Andrew L. Lewis Jr.
Children	Karen, Andrew, and Russell Lewis

Marilyn Stoughton Lewis (July 19, 1931 – December 7, 2020) was an American politician who served as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1979 to 1982.^[2][3][4]

Formative years

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 19, 1931, Lewis was a daughter of Russell S. and Bernice Bernard Stoughton. After graduating from Norristown High School in Norristown, Pennsylvania, she pursued higher education studies at Harcum College and the University of Miami.^[5][6]

She met her future husband, Andrew L. Lewis Jr., while they were still in high school. Both eighteen when they eloped, they were married in 1950.^[7] Her husband later became a businessman and the 1974 Republican gubernatorial nominee in Pennsylvania before being appointed as the United States Secretary of Transportation from 1981 to 1983 in the administration of U.S. President Ronald W. Reagan.

She also became a licensed pilot.^[8]

Political and legislative career

A Republican who was active in local and state politics, Lewis helped her husband to campaign for the Pennsylvania governor's office in 1974. Although the campaign was unsuccessful, it helped to increase the visibility of both Lewis and her husband. She was subsequently appointed as an alternate delegate to the 1976 Republican National Convention, and then volunteered with Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign.^[9][10]

Elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, she represented the state's 147th legislative district from 1979 to 1982.^[11][12]

In 1982, Lewis served as a representative to the United Nations Commission on the State of Women. The next year, she was appointed to the Presidential Commission on White House Fellows.^[13]

She also served on the boards of directors of Continental Bancorp (1982-1991), Interco (1984-1991), and Midatlantic Corp (1987-1991).^[14]

Later years

A longtime resident of Lower Salford Township, Lewis moved to Lansdale, Pennsylvania in 2005. From the late 1950s through 2020, she was a member of the Schwenkfelder Church in Worcester. A member of the boards of directors of the Grand View Hospital in Sellersville, the Philadelphia Zoo, and Ursinus College (1994-2005), she also volunteered for the Philadelphia Orchestra and the WolfTrap Foundation.^[15][16]

Death and interment

Preceded in death by her husband, Lewis died at the age of eighty-nine in Lansdale, Pennsylvania on December 7, 2020.^[17] She was interred at the Garden of Memories at the Central Schwenkfelder Church in Worcester.^[18]

References

1. United States. National Archives and Records Administration; United States. Office of the Federal Register (1983). Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents. Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration. Retrieved 2015-02-27.
2. Cox, Harold. "House Members L". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
3. Cook, Bonnie L. " Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.
4. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography). Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Archives, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, retrieved online August 25, 2023.
5. Cook, "Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89," The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.
6. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography), Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
7. Cook, "Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89," The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.
8. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography), Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
9. Cook, "Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89," The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.
10. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography), Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
11. Cox, Harold. "House Members L". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
12. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography), Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
13. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography), Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
14. Cook, "Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89," The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.
15. Cook, "Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89," The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.
16. "Lewis, Marilyn Stoughton" (biography), Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
17. "Obituary of Marilyn Lewis". Rlwilliamsfuneralhome.com. Retrieved 2020-12-15.
18. Cook, "Marilyn Lewis, former state representative from Montco and wife of Drew Lewis, dies at 89," The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 14, 2020.