Fred Marcus Wright

Fred Marcus Wright, age 91 years of Niles, Michigan died unexpectedly at 12:46 a.m. on Friday, August 9, 2019 with family gathered around at Spectrum Health Lakeland Medical Center in Saint Joseph, Michigan.  His family has chosen to extend and enhance the lives of others through the Gift of Life.

He was born on March 1, 1928 in Gleason, Tennessee to Joe E. and Sammie J. (Hall) Wright.  He attended schools in Gleason, and came to Niles in 1952.  He was employed for many years at the National-Standard plant in Niles, retiring in 1988.  In retirement, he drove for Dial-A-Ride for several years.

Fred was a founding member of the Huntly Memorial Baptist Church in Niles where he also served as a Deacon.  He enjoyed carpentry, had built a house on M-51 for his family, and kept busy in his shop making useful furniture for the house.  He also enjoyed traveling with his wife and family, either camping or in an RV, and had toured most of the United States including Alaska, fishing all along the way.

On November 24, 1948 in Gleason he married the former Barbara Ann Stewart.  Barb owned and operated the “Beauty by Barbara Ann” salon in Niles for twenty-five years.  She and Marcus celebrated the remarkable sixty-seventh anniversary of their wedding prior to her death on November 22, 2017.  They were sadly preceded in death by an infant great-granddaughter, Faith Gibson on April 1, 2015; sons-in-law Jerry Esch on April 22, 2017 and Charles Ruth on August 9, 2018; and by Fred’s siblings, Robert Joe Wright, Egbert Wright, and Wulerdean Verdell.

Surviving family includes four daughters, Beverly (& Timothy) Foor of Bradenton, Florida, Marcia Esch of Gleason, Deborah Ruth of Buchanan, Michigan, and Hope (& Van) Simms of South Bend, Indiana; ten grandchildren, fourteen great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild; Barb’s sisters, Sue Fuller and Linda Lenox, and brother, Tom Stewart; and many nieces and nephews.

The funeral service for Fred Marcus Wright will be at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 14, 2019 at Huntly Memorial Baptist Church, 1139 Huntly Road in Niles with Pastor Dale Welling officiating.  Committal will follow at the graveside at Mission Hills.

The family will receive relatives and friends on Tuesday at the Halbritter-Wickens Funeral Home, 615 East Main Street in Niles from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.  Contributions in memory of Fred may be made to Huntly Memorial Baptist Church