Memorials
Please help us fill this page with baton twirling memorials. Below is a sample memorial from one of our bloggers. It was written in 2010. Thank you in advance for sharing your memories.
Twirling Legend Major Eugene “Gene” Shea (1928-2015)
The following article is reprinted with permission from the Chicago Sun Times. It was originally published on April 22, 2015. Before World War II, baton twirling was dominated by men. And Gene Shea was one of the best. He twirled across the nation and in Canada,...
Peggy Jo Dodson (1930-2023): RIP Baylor Golden Wave Twirler
Peggy Jo Smith Dodson, 92, passed away October 22, 2023, at Ridgecrest Retirement and Nursing facility. She was born in Amarillo, Texas, on December 16, 1930, to George Garland Smith and Orpah Alice Cayton Smith. She grew up in Plainview, Texas, where she attended the...
The Unsolved Murder of Former TCU Majorette Neota Moad Green, 1963
During the 1953-54 school year, freshman Neota Moad was a "purple majorette" at Texas Christian University. In high school, she played the cornet in her high school band in Cisco, Texas. She was also a majorette. Sadly, in 1963, she was brutally bludgeoned in her Fort...
Victor Faber (1924-2008)
The following information was copied from a website that is using deprecated HTML elements. We've preserved it here for its historical significance. We edited the original for clarity. Victor with his daughters Vicki and Lana. Victor Faber started his baton twirling...
Annabelle “Annie” Dorothy Boucher Casagrande (1942-2023)
Annabelle Dorothy Boucher Casagrande "Annie" was born in 1942 and died in 2023. Her baton twirling claim-to-fame was serving as lead majorette for the Ottawa Rough Riders during the late fifties. Annie's Obituary
Dorinda Wolf
Official Obituary Dorinda Inez Wolf of Kingfisher passed away Sunday, Dec. 11, 2022, at OU Medical Center in Oklahoma City with family by her side. She was 78. Services are 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 16, at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Kingfi sher under the direction of...
Irene Garza (1934-1960)
Irene Garza, a Texas school teacher and beauty queen, was murdered by John Feit in McAllen, Texas in 1960. Feit was a Catholic priest at the time and Garza, a devout Catholic, had gone to him for confession. Feit was not convicted of her murder until 2017. He died in...
Remembering Debbie Dolen
1973 Over the last several years, we have spent countless hours researching the history of baton twirling and gathering up stories. Along the way we’ve noticed that men are often the first to share the most historic majorette and baton twirling photos of women. These...
15 Facts About Norman Crider, (1938-2009)
Rural New Mexican Norm Crider was born in 1938 and influenced a generation of French and Italian baton twirlers. Here are 15 facts about the late international champion and college feature twirler. 1 Born in 1938 in Lordsburg, New Mexico, he spent most his childhood...
Helen Mae Turner (1924-2008)
Helen Mae Turner, MajoretteHelen and her younger brothers David and Donald, 1941.Helen Mae Turner's memories of being a majorette for Wallace High School, Wallace Idaho, and other wonderful stories about her life are documented on a beautiful family website, Turner's...
Photo Epigraph
Marsha Anne Cox, Baton Twirler and Dancing Marvel | Mound City, Kansas, c. 1946
HAVE YOU NOTICED HOW BATON TWIRLING ALWAYS MAKES IT INTO SOMEONE’S OBITUARY?
Marsha Anne Cox Dieker, 80, of Upper Arlington, Ohio, passed away on Wednesday, December 15, 2021. She was born on April 12, 1941, in Fort Scott, Kansas, and was married for 44 years to her loving husband, Lawrence L. Dieker, who preceded her in death in 2005. As a child, Marsha enjoyed performing in dance and baton competitions…
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