Marlys Kapucinski DeBell October 5, 1939 – March 25, 2017

Born in Kellogg, Idaho to Anton and Myrtle Kapus, Marlys was raised in Duluth, MN where her father had a Dodge Plymouth agency. She had fond memories of traveling in Pullman train cars with her father in the 1940’s.
She spent summers at her parents farm on the Red River Valley in addition to much time in Cathay, ND where her maternal Norwegian grandparents lived. In 1955, her family moved to Spokane, WA where she graduated from Lewis & Clark High School. She attended Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA and married high school classmate Charley Fry in 1959. 
She moved to Gilroy, CA in 1966 where her first husband was employed at Voorhies & Parrish Insurance Agency. Marlys married Dennis DeBell in 1975. She cherished many life-long friends in Gilroy. She participated in weekly late night bridge games, went camping at the Gilroy DeBell ranch on Hecker Pass Highway and in Marina, CA where her daughter ice skated in the 1980’s.
She enjoyed supporting El Roble Elementary School fundraisers with her crafts and donations of holly bush clippings for the Christmas bazaars as well as Salinas Notre Dame High School student activities and travel. She was a member of the Gilroy Presbyterian Church. Marlys became a widow at age 45 when her second husband Dennis DeBell succumbed to melanoma cancer in 1985. She pursued a degree in museum studies at Indiana University in Bloomington. Upon her return to CA, she became registrar at the Maritime Museum of Monterey in 1990-1999 where she thrived in her beloved profession.
She lived in and restored a historic four-plex on Montereys Spaghetti Hill at the corner of Franklin & Cedar Streets with family friend Calvin Campisi as contractor. Upon retirement in 2000, she built a casita in LaQuinta, CA. She donated her time to researching native artifacts in the Coachella Valley and assisted the city of LaQuinta and local museums to acquire proper documentation proving ownership of relics. In 2007, she returned to Monterey County.
She is survived by daughter Tracey Fry DeBell of Monterey, CA, sister Connie Ansell of Boise, ID, nephew Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Kapus of Fredricksburg, VA, stepsons Michael DeBell of Seattle, and Kenneth and David DeBell of Roseburg, OR, 14 step-grandchildren and nine step-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by infant daughter Linnea Fry, first husband Charles Fry, second husband Dennis DeBell, her brother David Kapus, and her parents.
Private services on Monterey Bay are pending. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Gilroy Historical Society, P.O. Box 1621 or CHEER (Coastal Habitat Education & Environmental Restoration), P.O. Box 1735, Gilroy, CA, 95021, would be greatly appreciated.