Former Arkansas State Representative Marian Owens Shultz, 86, of Hot Springs Village, passed away at 10:21 a.m., Thursday, May 18. at CHI St. Vincent’s Infirmary in Little Rock. After an extended hospital stay in Hot Springs and Little Rock.
Marian Daniel was born in Beebe and reared in Searcy, the daughter of the White County (then pop. about 6,500) Coroner, Circuit Clerk and funeral home part-owner William Elvis Daniel, and his wife, Arlene McCulloch. Marian was one of three children, with her younger sibling, Emma Grace, passing away in infancy.
As a young girl, Marian lived inside her family’s Daniel Funeral Home in Searcy. She recalled when the funeral home was overrun with bodies after a deadly March 21, 1952, Judsonia tornado claimed 44 White County lives. Elvis often took coroner calls in the middle of the night. This somber upbringing led Marian to follow her parents’ example. Throughout her life, Marian looked for ways to help others, whether she was wearing a realtor or politicians’ hat.
As a student at Searcy High School, she played the drums in the marching band. She also wrote a school column for the Searcy newspaper, the Daily Citizen, and she attended Girls State in 1953. For much of her life, she also played the accordion at events and celebrations. She graduated from Searcy High School in 1954.
She worked part time jobs in high school, including at the Searcy Birdseye Frozen Food plant. She was a beauty contestant at the 12th Annual White River Water Carnival on Sat. August 5, 1955, in Batesville. That night, a new Memphis combo – billed as “Elvis, Scotty and Bill” - had a second musical billing at the Carnival pageant. That early small town Arkansas Elvis Presley performance became infamous because the combo was booed offstage after only four songs. It may have been one of the few times in history a concert promoter asked for – and received – a partial refund for an Elvis performance.
In 1954, Marian received an associate degree at Arkansas State Teachers (now UCA). A couple of years later, she went on a blind double date, paired with Wayne Owens, a clothier’s son from Warren. After a whirlwind romance, Wayne and Marian married in Searcy in 1957 and moved to Warren.
Wayne and Marian had their first two children – Cynthia and then Dan - in a small house across from the Bradley County Memorial Hospital, moving to an historic, turn of the century fixer-upper on Pine Street in 1960. Soon, William came along, and the family lived in the classic, two-story remodeled Southern home – one of the oldest in Warren - for over 30 years.
Marian helped Wayne run the family business, Owens’ Shoes and Clothing, before entering the real estate business. Warren Realty took off because of Marian’s drive and determination and because she simply liked helping people learn how to buy or lease a home. It was a career she continued to exceed in not only in Arkansas but later in Oklahoma and North Carolina, as well. That mindset of serving others helped her to continue to collect more friends and clients over the years.
In the early 1980s, that same service mindset led Marian to take on a long-term male incumbent for a seat on the Warren City Council. She shook hands at the local factories, wore through shoe leather campaigning all over town and spent many hours listening to voters’ concerns. Marian won and became Warren’s first female city council member, serving several terms.
Tragedy struck in 1990 when Wayne, a downtown Warren business fixture, unexpectedly died at the age of 54.
In 1992, when Bill Clinton was elected president, longtime Rep. John Lipton took an appointment to the State Transportation Board before the November general election. With John running unopposed, this left a candidate vacancy that the Democratic Party would have to fill.
In a political caucus vote, widow Marian was selected to become South Arkansas’ newest state house member over two other candidates. She served three terms (1992-1998) before being term limited. Her signature legislative act was sponsoring a groundbreaking 1995 bill requiring new teachers to undergo background checks that drew national attention and was a template for similar laws in other Southern states. After this law was passed, the state found teachers with criminal records from other states applying to teach.
Marian married second husband Perry Marlin Ingram and subsequently settled in Norman, OK. When Perry unexpectedly died, Marian relocated to Charlotte, N.C. where both of her sons, Dan and William own real estate firms. Dan much earlier had founded the popular “Arkansas Business” newspaper that continues to thrive today. She was drawn to spend time with her two granddaughters, Maddie and Caroline, attending school functions, sporting events and other activities with them.
Throughout her years in N.C., Marian was a popular figure, attending dances and social, political and realtor functions while working for Keller Williams Real Estate. She loved to travel, visiting the mountains and beaches. She was a faithful person and, at that time, and was a proud member of Weddington Methodist Church.
In 2017, Marian met John Shultz in Charlotte and moved to Hot Springs Village. Her death this week marks 32 years since the passing of her first husband, Wayne.
Marian will be remembered for her kindness to others, her vibrant personality and love of people, her trailblazing in real estate and politics and her being a devoted mother to three successful children. Marian was a Christian and serving others was a thread throughout her life. Her grandchildren enjoyed the time they spent with “Mimi” and feel she taught them many life lessons.
Surviving Marian are her three children, Cynthia Blair Owens of Louisiana and William H. (Sandra) and Charles D. (“Dan”) (Melissa) Owens of Charlotte, N.C. Also surviving are grandchildren, Madelyn Rose of Boone, N.C. and Caroline McCulloch Owens of Boston, Mass.
In addition to her late husbands, Marian was preceded in death by her parents, William Elvis Daniel and Arlene McCulloch Daniel, as well as her sister, Emma Grace Daniel and brother Robert Elvis Daniel.
Public viewing is Thursday, May 25 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Smith Westbrook Funeral Home, 401 West Dewitt Henry Drive, Beebe, Ark. Funeral and burial will be May 26 at 3 p.m. at Stoney Point Methodist Church near Beebe.
Marian’s children will host a Celebration of Life/Remembrance Services for Marian Sunday, June 11 at 2 pm at the First United Methodist Church in Warren. The public is invited to attend to help us celebrate Marian’s life.
Marian’s legislative career is featured in “Stateswomen: A Centennial History of Arkansas Women Legislators 1922- 2022,” by Lindsley Armstrong Smith and Stephen L. Smith.
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