Marcia (Moore) Vinci

Marcia Moore Vinci was born on October 24, 1927, in the tiny hamlet of Broxton in South Georgia with, I believe, just a single four-way stop sign before it grew by leaps and bounds and added a traffic signal. She was next to the youngest of five siblings with two older sisters and a brother and a younger sister. There was another brother who died in infancy which was sadly rather common in those difficult times. Her father had an insurance business in the nearby town of Douglas and was also a banker just before the crash of ‘29 and owned a small farm in Broxton where Marcia's husband later grew tomatoes - typical Italian.

 Marcia graduated from Broxton High School and went on to Andrew College for a couple of years before transferring and graduating from the University of Georgia with a degree in Home Economics. Sometime after graduating and working in Atlanta at Davisons Department Store, she and a few of her girlfriends took off on a European adventure. It was in Rome one evening when she visited “La Sacrestia” for dinner near the Pantheon where she met her future husband-to-be, who was moonlighting as a singer and guitar player with his friend. Incidentally, that restaurant is still there for those single ladies out there in search. Needless to say, he swept her off her feet or maybe it was the other way around and he chased her through Europe following their tour itinerary. It was sometime that year in 1955 that her only son was conceived in Italy and where they wed at the Campidoglio, The Capitoline Hill in Rome, Italy!

Marcia must have decided that she wanted for her child to be born in the States and so took the new Andrea Doria Italian luxury ocean liner back to New York from Genoa. It was on the next fateful trip from Italy that the Andrea Doria sank in the Atlantic on July 26, 1956, after colliding with the MS Stockholm where some 46 souls perished. She eventually made her way back to Georgia where her son was born in Douglas while her husband was still waiting on the necessary paperwork to travel - this was before the time of “open borders”. 

Her husband, Francesco Vinci, finally joined her in Georgia in September/October of ‘56 for an approximate one-year stay before they moved to Belleville and Weehawken, New Jersey where he secured a sales job at Alitalia Airlines. From there he was transferred to Hong Kong where Marcia got an administrative job working for the Italian Consulate. There she learned to speak fluent Italian and started collecting beautiful Chinese antiques which were to be had at bargain prices during those freewheeling colonial days. After a few memorable years living in the stately Hatton House overlooking Victoria Harbor, the family moved to Singapore where her husband was posted as Country Manager. There they hosted wonderfully catered garden parties at their home for many visiting Italian dignitaries and film celebrities traveling to exotic and tropical Singapore - yours truly witnessing those parties in my PJ’s peeking through the 2nd floor staircase - still remember cigarettes being passed around by waiters in white jackets on Silver trays to the guests! It was in Singapore where Marcia learned to play Mah Jong and improved her game of Bridge with the ladies at the Singapore Country Club. It was there also that Marcia and her husband along with another partner opened the first Italian Restaurant in Singapore called “Gino’s” and later “Gino’s a-Go-Go” when they added the trending discotheque of the 60’s with the latest hi-fi equipment.

When her husband was transferred to Djakarta, Indonesia, she decided to take her son and move back to Rome, Italy to live with her mother-in-law for a couple of years before moving to Wrightsville, Georgia where her sister, "Tiny" Claxton lived in 1970. There she returned to school earning her teacher’s credentials and taught the 6th grade with the now famed Herschel Walker being one of her best students!! Yours truly helped grade his papers, so I clearly remember! 

Marcia continued her studies at Georgia College earning both a Master’s and a 6-year Degree in Education/Special Education which led to her becoming a Regional Director of GLRS (Georgia Learning Resources Services) and traveling regularly to the area schools assisting and training teachers. Marcia also found the time to open a consignment store in a historic Wrightsville home with her friend Mary Ann Rowland called “The House on the Corner”.  She finally retired in 1997 and moved permanently to Dublin Georgia.  She remained extremely active during this time volunteering at the Fairview Park Hospital gift shop; traveling frequently to California to visit her son and explore that beautiful state along with many trips throughout Europe with her beloved sister who lived in Lyon, France. They went by car, by train, by plane, and by river cruise virtually everywhere including the Baltics!!! One special trip in 2000 was to Oberammergau in Germany with her dear friend and now 102-year-old former neighbor in Dublin, Ga., Montine Taylor, for “The Passion Play” held every 10 years!! 

Marcia was a highly intelligent, voracious reader with multiple interests along with a passion for classical music especially Spanish Classical Guitar that kept her active and well for many years. She continued playing Bridge Tournaments and Mah Jong mostly at the Dublin Country Club. She also regularly attended the First Methodist Church in Dublin. Watching the onset of Dementia as it progressed was, indeed, a heartbreaker, and aptly named “The Long Goodbye”! With God’s help, I pray that better treatments will be found!!

Marcia was preceded in death by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Eric L. Moore of Broxton Georgia; her brother, Eric Moore of Douglas; her nephew, Lamuel Moore of Broxton; her sister, Helen “Tiny” Claxton of Wrightsville; her sister, Virginia Crosby of Atlanta, and her sister, Dorothy Germain of Lyon, France. She is survived by her son, Paolo Vinci, and dearest companion Marcia Talbert of Torrance, CA.; her nieces, Linda Claxton, Jane Carter, and Paige Riley of Macon. She is also survived by her niece, Karyn Harris of Atlanta, and her brother, Gary Harris,  of somewhere in Florida; her nephew, Richard Germain of Marseille, France and her niece, Elizabeth Germain-Vallee of Geneva, Switzerland. Her beloved boxer-mix rescue dog, Dolce, also died in January of this year! 

I would further like to add special thanks and gratitude to my mother’s private caregivers who stuck with her to the end: Carol Jones, Debra Willis, Abigail Hall, and Tamia Wallace, all of Dublin!! Also, I could not be more grateful to Al Purser of Max Brown Pharmacy in Dublin who oversaw her constantly changing medications and offered personal and heartfelt caring service which is sadly lacking in today’s medical field, in general!! 

Marcia passed away on September 19, 2024. Services will be held privately.

In lieu of flowers, kindly send any donations to her beloved Alma Mater, Andrew College, in Cuthbert, Ga. where she remained a lifelong supporter. 

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