Past President Marlene Wilcox
Past International President Marlene Wilcox, CCCE/MPCE, died suddenly at her home in Anchorage, AK,on October 3, 2011. She was 79 years old. A native of Yuma, AZ, Marlene moved to Anchorage in 1972. She had a long career with the Municipality of Anchorage, holding the positions of Senior Collector, Collections Supervisor and Training Supervisor.
In 1987, she received the Distinguished Service Award for Municipal Utilities Credit & Collection. Five years later, she and the six collectors she supervised were named Employees of the Month for drastically reducing the bad debt index. She was also chosen, out of 230 employees of Municipal Light & Power, as Employee of the Year for 1992. {readmorelink}Read more..{/readmorelink}
After leaving this career, Marlene founded “Training with Marlene,” and devoted many hours to speaking and teaching on customer service, credit and collections. Marlene joined the Anchorage CPI in 1975 and maintained a record of perfect attendance. She was a past president of Anchorage CPI and District 10 and was elected CPI International President in 2003.
Marlene was passionate about CPI. She recruited many members and mentored many more in her local association and in District 10. She was always present at District 10 meetings and also faithfully attended meetings at the International level. She had already registered to attend the October 2011 Strategic Planning Meeting and the 75th Anniversary International Conference in June 2012 in St. Louis.
Marlene’s other passions were traveling, reading, baseball, baking Christmas cookies and singing. She was a staunch fan of the Seattle Mariners and went to spring training every year. At local charity auctions, a plate of her home-baked cookies would go for as much as $65.00.
She was a member of the Anchorage Concert Chorus and one of only two singers who had sung on every tour since the group started touring in 1979. She traveled with them to Russia and to engagements in Europe and South America. She also traveled with friends and, being adventuresome, would sometimes take off on a trip alone. She loved to regale friends and family with tales of her traveling experiences.
Marlene is survived by her sister Carol Bourassa, of Pintetop, AZ; brother Ron Muhlbradt, of Shingle Springs, CA; two nieces; four grand-nieces; and two grand-nephews.