Obituary of Marion Z. Hallas

                Marion Z. Hallas, 96, of Glastonbury, widow of the late Henry Hallas, passed away July 8, 2024 at home after a long period of declining health.

                Born November 1, 1927 to Carl and Caroline (Neuschler) Zirkenbach, she was a lifelong Glastonbury resident, having grown up on Parker Terrance and later on Griswold Street in the brick house across from Naubuc School. She was a lifelong member of the First Congregational Church of Glastonbury where for many years she sang in the church choir. She and Henry were married in the church in June 1949.

She and her husband operated the Glastonbury Citizen for many years, having acquired the weekly newspaper—then a shoe box full of mostly unpaid subscriptions as they put it—in 1953. Together, they transformed that shoebox into an important voice, as Glastonbury grew from a quiet farming community into a bustling suburb, until their retirement in the late 1980s.

                Marion was a 1945 graduate of Glastonbury High School and a graduate of Hillyer College, now part of the University of Hartford. She possessed a beautiful soprano voice, was a trained student of voice, and was much in demand in her younger years as a soloist at area weddings.

                She traveled widely, both in the U.S. and abroad. Following their retirement, she and Henry spent winters at Cape Coral in Florida. She loved the water, swimming and Cape Cod. She spent many vacation weeks with her children on the Cape, both in beachside cottages and (more daringly) a favorite campground in Truro. A longtime member of the Glastonbury Hills Country Club, she thoroughly enjoyed summers at the pool and in her later years was a member of the infamous poolside “Scrabble Ladies,” of which she was the last survivor. She was an avid reader with a preference for historical fiction.

                She is survived by a son, James and wife Deborah of Portland; a daughter, Barbara and husband Daniel Pierce of Westborough, MA; four grandchildren, Benjamin and James Hallas and Caroline and Elizabeth Pierce; and a niece, Deborah Zirkenbach Leonard .  She was predeceased by her husband Henry in 2008 and a brother, Carl William Zirkenbach, in 2015.

                Burial was private in Old Church Cemetery. A memorial service and celebration of a long life well lived will be held at the First Church of Christ Congregational, 2183 Main Street, Glastonbury, on Saturday, July 20, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. No flowers, please. Donations in Marion’s memory may be made to the music fund of the First Congregational Church of Christ, Glastonbury. For online condolences, please visit www.mulryanfh.com.