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- Source: Appleton Post Crescent Obituary
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Hopfensperger, Mary Rose
Mary Rose Ellen (Garvey) Hopfensperger breathes easily today. At the age of 73, the longtime Midland, MI resident passed away Sunday, August 28, 2005, at home with family hovering about.
She was born at the family farm house in Freedom, WI, on March 12, 1932, the younger daughter of John E. and Margaret (Nies) Garvey. The valedictorian of Freedom High Schools class of 1950, which graduated 19 students, married James F. Hopfensperger on September 7, 1950, at St. Nicholas Church in Freedom, WI. The couple moved to Midland, MI in 1954 when Jim accepted a teaching position with the Midland Public Schools.
Mary Rose worked from home running a household of ten children and returned to college as a mother of nine, earning a bachelors degree in education from Central Michigan University. She was also the co-owner and backbone of the familys business, Hopfensperger Art Studios. An active member of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, Queen of Angels Fraternity of the Secular Franciscans, and various other church and community organizations, Mary Rose was a devoted friend and always ready to lend a hand when a task needed to be done. She was happiest when helping others.
She had a smile that could light up a room and a voice that sung like a bird. Her laughter, especially in conjunction with that of her sister Ellen, was incredibly contagious { the giggling Garvey girls were something to behold. Her skills, efforts and strength seemed limitless. She abided by her dads words, Honest work is worship and to labor is to pray. A woman of great spirit, she was praying in every sense of the word every hour of every day.
Mary Rose will be greatly missed by her husband of nearly 55 years, James, and her children and their spouses: John and Rita Hopfensperger of Midland; Joan Most of Midland; Jeannine Hopfensperger and Thomas Teal of Chesaning; James A. Hopfensperger and Jane Maddox of Kalamazoo; Jay and Nichole Hopfensperger of Appleton, WI; Jed Hopfensperger of Midland; Matt Hopfensperger and Sian Kwa of Chapel Hill, N.C.; Mary and Brian Rhame of Cincinnati, Ohio; Mona and Thomas Priest of Box Elder, S.D.; and Marie Hopfensperger and Jeffrey Burdick of Chesaning.She is also survived by 11 grandchildren: Jessica (Galen) Westman, Juliana Teal, Josiah Most, Gabrielle Priest, John and Jennifer Hopfensperger, Katherine and LiEllen Rhame, Liam Hopfensperger, and Jeremy and Noah Hopfensperger; as well as her sister, Ellen Reimer of Freedom, WI; and a brother-in-law, Robert Hopfensperger of Oak Lawn, Ill.
Mary Rose was preceded by her parents: John E. and Margaret (Nies) Garvey, and three brothers-in-law: George and Leo Hopfensperger, and Frank E. Reimer.
Visitation will take place Wednesday from 2-4 p.m. and 6-7:30 p.m., with a wake service beginning at 7:30 p.m. The Secular Franciscans will hold a special service at 9:45 a.m. Thursday at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, with a funeral mass to follow at 11 a.m.
Cremation will take place and Mary Roses ashes will be placed near the statue of St. Francis in New Calvary Cemetery, Midland, MI at a later date.
Donations may be made in her honor to Habitat for Humanity or the Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis. Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Ware-Smith-Woolever Funeral Home, Midland, MI.
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1932 - 2005 (73 years)