Margaret Jean (Maxwell) Troxell |
| Posted 2017-04-20 by Judy Wight Branson |
| Camp Verde Bugle, Camp Verde, Arizona Thursday, April 6, 2017 Margaret Jean Troxell, affectionately known as “CT” to her family and friends, was born in Dubuque, Iowa on May 17, 1919 to Edna McLaughlin Maxwell and Levi Maxwell. She attended the University of Dubuque, in Iowa, where she met her future husband W.H. “Trox” Troxell. In 1942 her husband Trox took a job at the Navajo Army Depot, and they relocated to Flagstaff, Arizona. When the war broke out and Trox enlisted, Jean remained in Flagstaff with two small children and one on the way. Upon his return, they opened Jean & Trox Photo & Sound in downtown Flagstaff. It was considered one of the “finest photographic and sound equipment centers in the Southwest” by Arizona Living magazine, and won numerous national awards and top American Retailer Oscars in the over 50 years of its operation. Jean was instrumental in the running of the business, and was one of the first officers of the Flagstaff Business and Professional Women’s Organizations during those years. In 1955, she and her husband purchased the famed Twin Arrows Trading Post on I-40, and ran a trading post, café, fuel station, and auto repair shop straight through to the late 1980’s. During this time, Jean was also deputized as an honorary deputy of the Coconino County Sheriff’s department, by Sheriff Cecil Richardson. They also purchased their Page Springs home in 1955, where she became famous for her homemade jams and pickles from the gardens of the J-T Ranch. In addition to the businesses and Ranch property, she enjoyed her home in Cholla Bay, Mexico regularly, where they hosted friends, family, boy scout troop adventures and more. She was a world traveler, who extensively explored the Sea of Cortez on a 28-foot cabin cruiser with her husband. She loved to travel and visited Hawaii, Tahiti, Egypt, Panama, and more. Her circle of friends covered the globe. Her humanitarian efforts included not only feeding everyone, taking in “adopted” family members, and hosting parties for the masses, but also extended to decades of donations to the Christian Children’s fund, the sponsorship of the Happy Farm Orphanage in Mexico for over 35 years, along with the sponsorship of a Leper Colony in Korea. She was elected as the Woman of the Year 2000/2006 XI Gamma Row. She was chosen the Soroptomist’s International of the Americas Woman of Distinction, in recognition of her professional and voluntary accomplishments for International Goodwill & Understanding in 1986. She was still an avid member of the longest lasting club in Arizona, the Shakespeare Club. She enjoyed her beautiful Page Springs home and the love of family to the end of her days. So, how do you sum up nearly 100 years of a life of grace, kindness, and generosity into mere words? You don’t, but the actions of that life, and the transcendent effects that it has had on the generations beneath her do. She taught us how to help those less fortunate, to never judge a book by its cover, and to always keep a positive attitude, an open mind, and an open heart. At 97 years old, she was still full of enough sparkle, fun, and fire, to get up and whip her grandkids, and great grandkids at a game of cornhole. She was a world traveler, a lady, a kind and wise woman. Her humanitarian efforts reached either arms length, or worlds away. Her legacy lives on in her family, friends, and all of the lives that she has touched. She was preceded in death by her husband W.H. Troxell, and her sister Shirley Straham. She is survived by her 3 beautiful children Suzanne Morris, Jim Troxell, & April Troxell, 5 grandchildren Tawni Ramirez, Ginger Butler, Peter Morris, Kim Maney, & Mark Morris, 7 great-grandchildren, 2 great-great-grandchildren, and many other family and “adopted” family members, too numerous to mention. This world was a better place because of her existence. A Celebration of Life will be held at Relic’s Restaurant in Sedona Arizona on April 15th from 11:00AM - 3:00PM. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Esparaza Children’s Home IAP Box 1024 Lukeville, AZ 85341 Information provided by survivors. |
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