Marilyn was born in Sioux City, Iowa and was the daughter of Leo and Lucille Dougherty and had an older brother Jim and younger sister Nancy. She attended Cathedral High School and Briar Cliff College both located in Sioux City. She then received a BS in Physical Education at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls. Marilyn met her to-be husband in Kansas and was married in 1952 in Sioux City. Marilyn and Ken then moved to the East Bay in California and settled in Orinda where they raised their five children. During their marriage, they co-founded San Francisco Spice Company which is now based out of Woodland, CA. Marilyn also worked as a legal secretary at the law firm of Bronson, Bronson & McKinnon in San Francisco. After retirement, Marilyn enjoyed quality time and travel with friends and family and became the fiercest of competitors at the bridge table. Marilyn moved to Santa Cruz in 2011 where she could live near her family.
Marilyn is survived by her sister Nancy of Sioux City, Iowa, and five children: Joan Burgren (Menlo Park), Bill Vinnicombe (Granite Bay), John Vinnicombe (Manhattan Beach), Michael Vinnicombe (Woodland), and Mary Codiga (Santa Cruz). She also leaves fifteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Marilyn had a love of God, a passion for life, a regal presence, a fierce love for her family, deep connections with her friends, and was a constant source of love and support for those around her. She will always be remembered as the unique, incredibly special person that she was.
It was an honor to have known Marilyn Vinnicombe during the time she & Ken lived in Orinda. She was a woman with a lot of class, a can do spirit & possessed of a generous heart. And her lasting gift to the world was as the mother of five of the most accomplished children, all of whom I had the great fortune of knowing & calling my friends. May angels take you to your rest Marilyn.
I am fortunate to have had Marilyn in my life over the last 35+ years. We worked as a team at Bronson for over a decade. We quickly became and stayed lifelong friends. We shared hard work and many laughs. She was smart, elegant, level headed, kind, generous and a pleasure to be with. She was so proud of each of her children and their offspring. God bless her and her family forever more.
