Margaret Christine Hovde "Maggie"

Margaret (Varty) Hovde, affectionately known as Maggie, was born in Detroit on August 20, 1923 to Joseph and Anna Varty. She was one of the last of “The Greatest Generation” and with her five beloved siblings staunchly faced the hardships of the Great Depression and WII. Like most people of that time, they were modest and self-deprecating simply saying “we did what we had to do.”

After the war, she worked as a secretary for the Teamsters Union in Detroit. Richard “Dick” Hovde was a recent arrival from Wisconsin. He had completed his service in the U.S. Navy and was seeking job opportunities in the post-war boom of southeastern Michigan. They met through mutual friends and courted in the social and economic whirl of Detroit in its heyday, marrying in 1951. In twelve years, they had five children sprinkling them with their special brand of Irish-Norwegian “crazy dust” during more than 60 years of marriage.

They were partners in a tool and die business for decades. With Dick’s extraordinary machining ability and Maggie’s savvy talent for numbers, they made the enterprise a success. Though self-employed and raising five children, they made time for travel and visits with their large, extended family.

With their brothers and sisters in Michigan and Wisconsin there were what seemed like endless summers of travel and adventure. Dozens of cousins roamed and swam through the fields and lakes of Wisconsin and biked through the streets of Detroit with innings of curb ball where kids of all ages got a chance to play. There were countless celebrations - First Communion and graduation parties, reunions and the amazing feasts of Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter with card games always included for good measure. Maggie loved all of the get-togethers, though you may have caught her painting the bathroom walls on Thanksgiving morning.

Their children got a taste of their wanderlust. On winter breaks or summer vacations, Maggie and Dick loaded the Sauterne Gold Ford station wagon, hitched the pop-up camper and headed West and South. The seven family members survived brake failure in the Bear Tooth Mountains and detours through the Red Cloud Loop, Louisiana bayou backroads and the south side of Chicago. Maggie and Dick never got “lost.”

They sold their business in the mid-70s, filling their time with auctions, travel and real estate. They were flipping properties before it became cool. They traveled on their own or with lifelong friends. Their adult children knew they were typically in North America. There were occasional surprises, like the time they went missing in Mexico. With no GPS or cell phones, the children resorted to On-Star rather than bothering the U.S. embassy. Maggie and Dick had decided it was a grand idea to take a road trip through our southern neighbor. Fortunately, they emerged unscathed in Texas. The only casualty was Dick’s golf sweater lost somewhere between Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. They finally settled in Daphne, Alabama, buying a house on a whim because “it was a good deal.”

In fact, Maggie never lost her depression-era frugality. If she heard the words “clearance” or “sale”, she would grab her purse and car keys before you could say “fifty percent off.” Dick and she made a habit of arriving late at hotels to get a discount for the night. She usually won at her bargaining game. However, one time she lost to an uncompromising reception clerk in Arizona. They were forced to spend the night in their car but were delighted to see the sunrise over the Grand Canyon.

After nearly twenty years in Alabama, Dick passed away. Maggie returned to southeastern Michigan to be with her family. She always maintained her fierce independence. She was an uncomplaining, nearly 50-year cancer survivor. When she visited doctors she attempted to listen but was so hard of hearing that all instructions had to be written down. She decided when she would go into assisted living and negotiated a discount on her rent. When the Covid lockdowns hit, she played Sudoku, completed cross-word puzzles in ink, read extensively and wrote to her grandchildren and great grandchildren and even a pampered grand-dog in her perfect Catholic school-girl script. Until a few days before her death, she was bright, confident, sassy and, in her phrase, “had all her marbles.” In her memory, take a loved one in your arms for a “won’t-let-go” hug and hum a few bars of my “Wild Irish Rose”.

She was preceded in death by most of her generation especially the love of her life, Richard Hovde, her adored siblings Robert (Bette) Varty, Magdalene (Benjamin) Markowitz, George (Genevieve) Varty, Isabelle (Fernand) Ricard and Joseph Varty.

She is survived by her loving children Joan (Rick) Gay, Beth (Thomas) Moceri, Lisa Hovde, Mark (Nancy) Hovde and Greg (Laura) Hovde as well as a host of absolutely perfect grandchildren, great grandchildren and scores of unfailingly kind and loyal nieces and nephews.

On Saturday, January 29, Visitation will begin at 10:00 a.m. at Harry J. Will Funeral Home, 37000 W. Six Mile Road, Livonia, 48152. The funeral service will begin at 11:30 a.m., followed by a procession to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, 25800 W. Ten Mile Road, Southfield, 48033, for a commitment service in the East Chapel. A luncheon will immediately follow the commitment service at:

Antonio’s Cucina Italiana

37646 W. 12 Mile Road

Farmington Hills, MI 48331. Directions will be provided at that time.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a gift to the Detroit Goodfellows Organization https://www.detroitgoodfellows.org/ or a charity that is close to your heart.