A teenage Marvin watched as a barnstorming biplane landed in a pasture of the 160 acre family farm in Cherokee Kansas. Marvin and his father Carl took a ride. His mother would have nothing to do with those "new fangled contraptions." The effect of that flight on Marvin would last a lifetime.

Marvin left the family farm for a BA in Aeronautical Engineering at Kansas State University, eventually finding an engineering position at the newly formed Beech Aircraft in Wichita Kansas in 1939. Marvin rose rapidly to the position of Project Engineer on such projects as the A-26B Douglas wing subcontract, the Model D18A, Model 50, and Project "FICON". His work on the KDB-1 missile target drone provided the most endearing memento of Marvin's work for his two sons Roger and Neil. Hidden in a collection of old Beech photos is a picture of forlorn Marvin looking at the KDB-1, nose down in a dry lake at White Sands New Mexico. Come to think of it there is another photo of Marvin with a nose down aircraft he had attempted to land in cow pasture outside Wichita. Guess he never really got over that early barnstorming experience.

Despite such occasional mishaps, Marvin was "a hell of an engineer," and he had "the right stuff", and his career culminated as Project Engineer of the highly successful twin engine, pressurized, business aircraft, the Beech Duke. It was one of the earliest, production, pressurized business aircraft of it's day, and such a sophisticated aircraft, that when you bought it Beech threw in 2 days of, specific to the Duke, Ground School. A model of the Duke is on display in this museum.

As this is being written (2005) Marvin age 93 resides with his wife Stella in their home in Wichita Kansas.