Marion was born in East Baltimore to Polish immigrants, Anthony and Stefanie (Koros) Szczybor, and was the youngest of 8 children. His father died when he was 10 and he helped support his recently widowed mother with a paper route, doing odd jobs and working (and living) on a farm in Westminster, MD in the summer months. After graduating from high school, he joined the Naval Reserve and eventually became a life insurance salesman with Sun Life Insurance Company. During a company meeting in New York City, Marion met his future wife Elsie Lang. They settled in West Baltimore and had three children, Mark, Paul and Eric. Elsie passed away in 2023 after 67 years of marriage and they had four grandchildren, Colleen, Catherine, James and Joe as well as a great-granddaughter, Addy.
Chick was gregarious, a natural charmer and a born entertainer. He was particularly passionate about singing and developed a great reputation over the years. He was always ready to serenade anyone who was close by. In addition to singing in glee clubs and church choirs, he also sang at weddings, funerals, and local events. His greatest achievement was singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at professional sports games including the Washington Wizards (NBA basketball), Washington Capitals (NHL hockey) and the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards.
In his 40’s he developed a debilitating retinal disease which took his sight and eventually ended his career with Knights of Columbus Insurance. His blindness, however, did not keep him from his singing engagements, in fact, he started a group called “Let Us Entertain You” and they performed countless shows at senior centers, nursing homes and summer concerts. In addition, he participated for many years with a research group at Johns Hopkins, “Second Sight” which is dedicated to developing technology to help restore vision to the blind.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to:
National Federation of the Blind, 200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, MD 21230, 410-659-9314.
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