Martha J. Fierke

Martha was born on January 11, 1927 in Ann Arbor, Michigan to Clarence and Aileen Thorne. She attended and graduated from Hillsdale Public Schools and from Hillsdale College with the class of 1949 where she majored in education and minored in music. While at Hillsdale College she joined the Pi Beta Phi Sorority. She began her teaching career in Albion at Washington Gardner Grade School, North (Caldwell Elementary), Babcock School, Crowell Elementary and finishing her five-decade teaching career at Harrington Elementary. Shortly after moving to Albion, she met her future husband, Ernest (Bud) Fierke, Jr. on a blind date set up by mutual friends and they were married on June 29, 1952 in Hillsdale, Michigan.

Martha was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Albion where she was active in the church vocal and bell choirs. Her early love of music continued her entire life. She was an accomplished piano and organ player, a choir director for the 4-H Club, performed vocal solos at weddings and was active in musical theatre with the Marshall Civic Players and Albion Community Theatre. She was a member of the Albion Historical Society ultimately serving as president as well as the Vivian Society of the Elks. She enjoyed quilting and gardening and in her later years, spending the early spring in South Carolina with her family where she walked the beach daily and took joy in getting up early to watch the sunrise over the ocean.

She is survived by her two daughters, Jan (Doug) Holtz of Carmel, Indiana and Susan Riippa of Battle Creek, Michigan; two grandsons and six great-grandchildren; Bradley (wife Amy, Beck, Bryce and Betty) Holtz of Zionsville, Indiana and Michael (wife Allison, Henry, James and Audrey) Holtz of Louisville, Kentucky. She was preceded in death by her husband of 63 years, Ernest; her parents Clarence and Aileen Thorne; and her two sisters, Marjorie Jean Thorne of Hillsdale and Helen Caskey Womble of Prescott, Arizona.

Family and friends will gather on Saturday, October 8th from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at J. Kevin Tidd Funeral Home, 811 Finley Drive in Albion, with a memorial service beginning at 12:00 p.m. Pastor David Habicht will officiate. Internment will follow at Riverside Cemetery in Albion.

The family would like to thank the caregivers and staff at Spring Arbor Assisted Living and SouthernCare Hospice Services for the compassionate level of care they have provided. A very special thank you to Sam Markovich for his loving care during Martha’s final years spent in her home and at Spring Arbor Assisted Living. Memorial contributions may be made to the Albion Community Foundation, the Albion Historical Society, or the donor’s charity of choice.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.kevintiddfuneral.com for the Fierke family.