Aug. 22, 1926 — April 5, 2016

Wava Marie Hartman, 89, died on Tuesday, April 5 at West Woods of Niles after a short illness. She was born on Aug. 22, 1926, to Elias and Magdalena Troeger in Defiance, Ohio.

Wava graduated in 1944 from Highland-South Richland High School in Ayersville, Ohio and was employed at Michigan Gas Company in Sturgis, Michigan and Ford Agency in Three Rivers, Michigan. She lived in Jones, Michigan, Newberg Township most of her life and served 35 years on the Newberg Township Election Board.

On April 11, 1953, she married Charley M. Hartman at Trinity Lutheran Church in Sturgis, Michigan. They had been married 58 years at the time of his passing in 2011. Wava and Charley always had a large vegetable garden and beautiful flower gardens. For over 25 years they had an October harvest sale of pumpkins and fall decorations at their home on M-40.

Wava was a member of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Three Rivers and, after moving to Niles, she became a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Niles, Michigan.

She is survived by her son and his wife, Ray and Julie Hartman, grandsons, Eric, Tyler and Evan Hartman, all of Niles, sister-in-law Blanche McKee of Mendon and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband, Charley M. Hartman, son, Charles J. Hartman, grandson, Ryan A. Hartman and brother, Lester Troeger.

Funeral Services will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 9, 2016, at the Mater-Ralston Funeral Home, Marcellus, Michigan. Visitation will be from 10 to 11 a.m. prior to the services Saturday. Burial will follow at Poe’s Cemetery, Jones, Michigan.

Memorial donations may be directed to the Ryan A. Hartman Memorial Scholarship at Southwestern Michigan College or to the Donor’s Choice.

Wava’s family is thankful to the entire staff at West Woods of Niles for their kind and compassionate care of Wava in her last two months.