Irene Marion Howey

Irene Marion Howey, age 94, of Waterford, died Thursday, August 17, 2017. Irene was born on September 10, 1922 in Saskatchewan, Canada, the daughter of Calmer and Sophia (nee Rubliskie) Frovarp. The first of 9 children, Irene ‘s family traveled by horse and wagon from Saskatchewan to North Dakota where she grew up. She and her sister came to Detroit by train to visit family members but could not return home due to the outbreak of WWII. Irene stayed at the Detroit YWCA and supported the war effort by working at Burroughs as an assembly line worker. In 1946 Irene married Leslie E. Howey and they built their own home on Sylvan Lake. Leslie preceded her in death in 1993. Irene was a longtime member of Spirit of Grace Church, formerly Sylvan Lake Lutheran Church, and active with the church altar guild. She was a member of the Pontiac Women’s Chorus. She volunteered in the Pontiac Osteopathic Hospital Guild gift shop for 30 years. She also did fundraising for the United Fund. She truly enjoyed gardening, especially resurrecting dying plants. Irene greatly loved her family and friends, and will be remembered by many for calling then on their birthday and singing the Happy Birthday Song. She will be greatly missed. Irene is survived by her daughter Jeanette Mentzer (Charles); granddaughters Susan Mentzer (Chris Miller), and Jennifer Pankau (Robert Pankau III); great granddaughters Noelle and Teagan Pankau. She is also survived by her sister Thelma Bolduc, and brothers Willard Christ Frovarp, as well as many nieces and nephews. Funeral Service will be held 11 a.m. Monday, August 21, 2017 at Spirit of Grace Church, 2399 Figa Ave., West Bloomfield. Rev. Mary Duerksen officiating. Interment at White Chapel Memorial Cemetery. Irene will lie in state at the church at 10 am. The family will also receive friends Sunday, August 20, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Pixley Funeral Home, Godhardt-Tomlinson Chapel, 2904 Orchard Lake Road, Keego Harbor. Memorials may be made to Spirit of Grace Church, 2399 Figa Ave., West Bloomfield.