Biography

Gertie Feuz Marrs was born in Switzerland in 1910 and came with her family to Canada in 1912. Gertie’s father was Edward Feuz, one of the original Swiss Guides brought to Canada by the Canadian Pacific Railway. The family occupied the house that, in the most recent years, is known as Walter Feuz’s house for two or three years, but when Gertie started school, the family moved off Edelweiss Hill to take residence in their own place, where the Brookside Motel is today. Gertie and other children in that area had to walk to school during a time when plows were nearly unheard of. Gertie attended Lady Grey School, and when she had completed high school, she went to Vancouver to Business College. After working for a time at the Vancouver Stock Exchange, Gertie came home, where she spent her summers working with her mother at the Tea House at Lake Louise and the rest of the year picking up what secretarial work was available. After a while, a permanent job came along as a secretary at the Government Agent’s office. Gertie met her future husband, George Marrs, in 1936, and it was several years before they had the means to get married. One child, Patricia (Holland), was born to the couple, and when Pat was in her early teens, the family moved into a new house that they had built on 10th Ave. Gertie’s husband, George, was a pharmacist and quite comfortable with the public, and when Golden held its first civil elections in 1957, he became our first mayor. Gertie took to life in the public eye and accompanied her husband when he met with Princess Margaret in 1958 and then Queen Elizabeth in 1959. She entertained many dignitaries in her home, including W.A.C. Bennett. Gertie loved to dance and play badminton, the latter being how she met her husband. She was an active member of St. Andrews United Church and sang in the choir right up until her passing in 2004 at the age of 94.