Obituary of Margaret Ruth Edmison

Margaret Ruth Cammack was born June 14, 1937 in Salem, Oregon, the second of four children of her parents Albert & Ruth. The young family soon moved East. Margaret grew up on the 78 acre family farm outside of Ontario, Oregon. She graduated from Ontario Union High School in 1955. Attending George Fox College, Margaret graduated in 1960 with a degree in Home Economics & just 3 credits short of a second degree in Bible. After spending a year as an emergency teacher for Greenleaf Friends Academy in Idaho, Margaret returned to the Portland area. She worked several different retail jobs.Margaret eventually became a color and sizing inspector for Jantzen. Never one to be far from her family, she enjoyed spending time with her parents, siblings & their children. During her time working for Meyer & Franks selling fabric, she met Bill Edmison, the brother of a co-worker. Bill & Margaret continued to see one another for several years, finally marrying December 20, 1969. The family moved to Bend, Oregon in 1972, where they raised their two children. She enjoyed spending time with all of her family, both birth & the family that marriage brought to her. Making a loving, supportive, and welcoming home brought her great joy. Margaret’s consistent and constant love for her Lord, Jesus Christ, was evident in how she spoke with people, how she raised her children & loved her husband. She was a shy person, never wanting to draw attention to herself. However that didn’t keep her from being of service to others. Her choice for service was mostly behind the scenes, cleaning, preparing craft items for VBS, scheduling nursery or Sunday School workers, even babysitting for those who could not find suitable alternatives. When the need was large enough, she might step into the spotlight for a short time, once even running a scouting program called Caravans, so that the opportunity would be there for her children and the rest of the children of the area. Through the years, Margaret’s faithful following of Jesus, helped lead Bill to a saving knowledge of Christ. They moved to Willamina in 1986 following employment opportunities. Margaret continued in her service roles, helping with Sunday School, VBS, missions, eventually becoming the Church Secretary at the Sheridan Church of the Nazarene. Bill & Margaret moved to Salem in 2004. Margaret continued her service, now at South Salem Nazarene. Her first love was always Jesus Christ; all of her love and relationships sprung from that well. She always wanted people to see Jesus before they saw her. She is described by her son as follows. “If all Christians were like my mom, Christianity wouldn’t have a bad reputation. I have had killers, thieves, & whores in my mom’s house. Her only concern was ‘Did you get enough to eat? Do you have a safe place to stay?’” Margaret, when looking back on her life, wanted everyone to see “more than 80 years of Amazing Grace”. In lue of flowers , charitable donations can be made to Tattoos Cure Cancer, a 501c Nonprofit. TCC is made up of internationally respected tattoo artists, who come together to stage events raising funds to benefit both local & national cancer needs, from helping a single mother facing a cancer battle to donating to research into childhood cancers. 100% of the monies brought in are sent back out. You can keep up to date with TCC on Instagram @tattooscurecancer or by visiting www.tattooscurecancer.com. You can make a one time tax deductible donation directly at www.paypal.com enter tattooscurecancer@gmail.com & choose your dollar amount. Margaret was very proud that her son was one of the tattooers considered to be “TattoosCureCancer ProTeam/Familia”. Another type of donation would be to donate to your local summer camp scholarship fund through your church or through a specific camping organization. Through the years, Margaret was a big supporter of Christian Camping. She served in a variety of roles for Girls Camps. Margaret’s grandchildren attended multiple camps growing up and will pass this on to future generations. Her daughter’s students do annual service projects at a couple of different camps, exposing them to opportunities beyond their own current experience. Margaret is survived by: her husband of more than 50 years, Bill Edmison of Salem, her children Nancy (Kelley) Swarat of Hermiston, Oregon, and Omar (Kati) Edmison of Salem, her grandchildren: Kayla (Sheldon) Field of Nampa, Idaho, Tim Swarat of Hermiston, Oregon, Daisey Edmison, Myrna Edmison and Dexter Edmison all of Salem, Oregon, her siblings Ralph Cammack, Paul Cammack and Edith White, many nieces & nephews, cousins & extended family. Assisting the family is Virgil T. Golden Funeral Service.