Marcia Worth

Marcia Elizabeth Worth was born an only child on June 27, 1946, to George and Evangelist F. Estella Worth in Columbus, Ohio. She departed this life to be with the Lord on July 8, 2021.

After graduating from Central High School, she attended Central State University, where she majored in music. She later obtained an associate’s degree in computer programming from Columbus Technical Institute (CTI). She was employed with the U.S. Postal Service, the Ohio EPA, and the US Bureau of Disability. Her last place of employment was at the Church of Christ of the Apostolic Faith as the Director of Graphics and Minister of Music.

Marcia played classical music. From memory, she would play the greats like Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, etc. She also had perfect pitch in that she could play anything after hearing it. The late Ralph Conley, who used to play for a choir she directed, would often say that she taught songs exactly as they were recorded. She knew every note and taught every part exactly as it was written. She was very particular about that.

She was a faithful member of the Church of Christ, where she served in various capacities. She and her mother, Estella Worth, first joined the church when it was located at Washington and Donaldson. She often talked about the music ministry there and how people in the neighborhood would be drawn outside the church to hear them sing. She loved “Pop Smith,” as she referred to Bishop Karl F. Smith, and the entire congregation as a whole. It was while singing in the choir as a teenager that she received the Holy Ghost.

As an adult, Marcia sang in the gospel choir under the direction of Brother Thommy Adams and Sister Marquerite Cobb. She even led a song, “God Is,” by James Cleveland. She later started the Ambassadors For Christ, the teenage choir of the Church of Christ. The choir traveled to minister in different cities, including the Ohio District and Southern Ohio District Councils of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World (PAW). They also were asked to sing at various local churches.

The Apostolic Youth for Christ (AYC) department was planning a large event for which they wanted a choir made of youth from all over the city. Marcia was asked to put it together, and she agreed. The choir was only to be in existence for the one engagement, but the choir members did not want it to end; and, thus, the City-Wide Teenage Choir was born. This choir of over one hundred voices traveled throughout the Central Ohio area and beyond to minister in song. Ronnie Hairston, Ruth

Ann Spencer-Butts, and Keith Dobbins were invited to participate as directors as well. Many would say that the singing engagements and concerts were the highlight, but it was really the rehearsals. Every Saturday rehearsal began with everyone on their knees in prayer followed by a testimony service where the members would give God praise, encourage one another, or share a passage from a Bible study from earlier that week. And, if it were possible, only then would the rehearsal begin. There were many rehearsals where not a song was sung because the Spirit of God took over, and kids were praying in their prayer languages for hours. It was during those experiences that many choir members say that their personal relationship with God began. Marcia impressed upon every choir member the importance of having a personal relationship with God, and she would let nothing get in the way of helping each member cultivate an intimate relationship with Him during her time with the choir. She was also one of the original choir directors of the Resurrection Mass Choir, founded by Keith Dobbins.

In addition to the emphasis on the spiritual lives of the young people she cared for, she also made time for fun and fellowship. She would coordinate extracurricular activities at various locations throughout the city. She also set up fundraisers for the choir to purchase robes that included car washes in the church parking lot or bike-a-thons at Blacklick Woods Metro Park.

There are many whom are mightily used by God today, whose foundation includes time in a choir that Marcia E. Worth directed and/or the week on Hallowed Hills Campgrounds that she helped coordinate every summer. There are many testimonials of those who recognize what a gift she was to the youth. Many of the members are old enough to have children of their own now and have expressed how much they would love for their children to be afforded the experience of having someone as invested in their spiritual growth as Sister Worth invested in their own.

Marcia was preceded in death by her father, George Worth; mother, Evangelist F. Estella Worth; son, Marcus A. Worth; great-aunt (second mother), E. Eugenia Walker; great-uncle, James H. Walker; special cousins, James H. Walker, Jr., Fred D. Walker, and Anderson Caldwell, Jr.; and many other relatives.

She has left to treasure her memory: daughter, Monica E. Worth; granddaughter, Erin N. Worth; great-grandchildren; Brianna Worth, Aaliyah Worth, Marcus-Allen Worth, Keith Worth, David Worth, Isaiah Worth, and Ava Worth; cousins, Pamela Caldwell, Deborah Caldwell, Chris (Seana) Caldwell, Michael Caldwell, Sr., and Jaleeo George; special friend, Pastor Neicey Johnson; and many other relatives and close friends.

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