Mary Madeleine (Kenz) Tagg

Mary Madeleine (Kenz) Tagg, 86, of Chillicothe, passed into her Heavenly Home on Tuesday, November 16, 2021 to be with Jesus.  She was born on October 7, 1935 in Chillicothe to the late John Adolph and Hazel (Calhoun) Kenz, and was an “only” child.  On June 24, 1962, she married Walter J. Tagg, Jr., who preceded her in death on February 21, 2019.

They had two wonderful sons; David Allen Tagg (Shellee) who had the only granddaughter, Tiffiany Renee Tagg, and Ernest Edward Tagg (Laura).  Tiffiany’s mother died of brain cancer when Tiffiany was five, and Madeleine and David raised her in Florida.  David was in charge of one generation plant (Orlando Electric), and Edward worked his way up to V.P. at Time Warner TV in Austin, Texas.

While living in Florida for eight years; a fellow teacher said that she had taken a cruise and, when the ship docked in Turkey, many young college students met the people who meeting them and who offered to show the passengers the “real” Turkey.  One young lady wanted to be a pen pal.  So, Madeleine offered to write to her.  A month later, Madeleine received a letter from Derya, asking her to print, no writing.  The next year, Derya was offered a six week stay with the Taggs, and Madeline and Walter brought her to Chillicothe and she was accepted as a student.  She graduated from OUC and from Franklin University.  She is now married, has two children, and is a computer engineer, and is an American citizen.

As a child, Madeleine always said that she was going to have 100 children!  At 17 years of age, she graduated from CHS.  In 1960, she graduated from Ohio University, and in 1985, she graduated from Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati with a Master’s Degree of Education.

Before she married, she taught at Centralia (Zane Trace), and after her marriage, she taught at Logan Elm.  When she came back from Florida, she taught the GED program in Pickaway and Ross counties, and “helped” some of the football players at Ohio State to learn the basics of math and reading.  Before she retired, she received outstanding achievements as an instructor.  She was awarded a “Teacher of the Year” in 1987.

Walter and Madeleine were entrepreneurs.  They had three farms in Pickaway, Ross, and Vinton counties.  The owned and operated Tagg Motorcycles, Tagg Camper Sales, Tagg Home Rentals, and Tagg Motels.

She also loved to travel.  She visited 45 states, Mexico, Canada, the Bahamas, and England where she was asked to escort 2,000 students on England’s streets, buildings, and the changing of 1999 to 2000.  She enjoyed meeting classmates at Bob Evans one day a month.

Madeleine was a member of The Ross County Landlord Assoc., The Farm Bureau, The Lucy Webb Hays Heritage Center (6th St.), National, state, and local Teachers Assoc., The Tyler Memorial United Methodist Church, The Senior Center, and Beta Sigma Phi.

Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m., Monday, November 22, 2021 in the FAWCETT OLIVER GLASS AND PALMER FUNERAL HOME, the Pastor Garry Hogue, officiating.  Burial will follow in St. Margaret’s Cemetery on her family plot.  The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 11:00 a.m. until the hour of service on Monday.  Memorial contributions may be made to a church of choice, the Ross County Humane Society, 2308 Lick Run Rd. # A, Chillicothe, OH 45601, or Purrfect Companions, 80 N. Mulberry St., Chillicothe, OH 45601. 

The Fawcett Oliver Glass and Palmer Funeral Home is honored to serve the Tagg Family.

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