Marsha Dianah Stallworth Ratchford was born on May 26, 1967 in Detroit, MI. She grew up in Mobile, AL, and lived in Washington, D.C., in adulthood. She was the oldest of her siblings, and often looked after the younger ones. Marsha attended and graduated from LeFlore High School in 1985 and joined the U.S. Navy soon after. One day, Marsha was in a gym at a training school in San Diego when she locked eyes with Rodney Ratchford. They clicked instantly, fell in love, and were married in May of 1988. They had three children together, a son, Rodney Marquez Jr., age 11, a daughter, age 8, and another daughter, age 18 months (at the time of Marsha’s passing). Marsha loved being a mother and was always thinking of her children in all she did. She also loved working with computers, which was why she enjoyed her job at the Pentagon.
Marsha worked as an information technician, handling military messages at the Pentagon’s Navy Command Center. She loved her career and was very well-liked by the people she worked with. She joined the Navy fifteen years prior, and had just recently re-enlisted for five more years, so she could retire after twenty years. After retirement, Marsha had dreams of opening a homeless shelter with her sister, Angelina Brunt. On the morning of September 11, 2001, Marsha called her husband to tell him about the attacks at the World Trade Center. They exchanged “I love yous” and Marsha told him to have a nice day and that she would call him later. Not long after, Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, and Marsha’s life was unfortunately taken in the attack. Though her life was unfairly cut short on September 11th, Marsha’s loving spirit and shining legacy will always live on, forever in the hearts and memories of her loved ones and through all who continue to remember her.
In Marsha’s memory, her sister, Angelina Blunt, created Marsha’s Guardian Angels, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping the homeless and those in poverty. The organization helps provide food, shelter, clothing, transportation, and resources to homeless and impoverished families and populations.
Happy heavenly birthday, WE WILL NEVER FORGET. ❤️🕊️

Mobile National Cemetery (Post Section)

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MARSHA D STALLWORTH RATCHFORD

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