Margaret Mary Hettig

Margaret M. “Peg” Hettig, 88, of St. Joseph, MI passed away Friday, July 03, 2015 at the Hanson Hospice Home in Stevensville. A Celebration of Life service will be held on Thursday, July 9th, 2015 at 2 P.M. at Starks and Menchinger Chapel and Cremation Services, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph with Deacon Mike Gallagher officiating. Friends may visit prior to the service from 12 P.M. until 2 P.M. A private burial will take place at Riverview Cemetery at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice at Home or Lake Michigan Catholic Schools. Those wishing to leave an online condolence for Margaret may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com. Peg was born on April 13, 1927 in San Francisco, CA into a large Irish family. Her parents were Patrick and Catherine (McCarthy) King. She was proud of her Irish heritage. Peg graduated from St. John’s Ursuline High School in 1945. After graduation, she went to work at Union Nighted Company on the piers in San Francisco. It was there she met Herman (Jer) Hettig, Jr. of St. Joseph. He was in the Navy, stationed at Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay. They were married on July 27, 1946 at St. John’s the Evangelist Catholic Church. While growing up, Peg was warned by her mother not to live in the Midwest. Her mother lived in Chicago before settling in San Francisco. Despite the warning, Peg and Jer relocated to St. Joseph in 1949 to raise their family. She soon learned about ‘winter’. When all her children were in school, she went to work at Holly’s Restaurant in Benton Harbor. She then worked at Mercy Hospital in Benton Harbor and then Mercy-Memorial in St. Joseph from which she retired. After retirement, she volunteered in many areas of Lakeland Medical Center; including Hospice at Home where she was known as one of the “Mercy Girls.” She lived in the Old St. Joseph neighborhood and was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Parish for 65 years. She enjoyed going on bus trips and to dinner and movies with her friends. She also enjoyed going to the casino. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband Jer; her daughter Lee Jacques; her brother Bill; and her sisters Alice, Eleanor, Mary, Katherine and Ann. She is survived by her children, Jim Hettig, Robin (Ken) Halamka, Mary Smith; son-in-law Paul Jacques; her grandchildren, Megan (Tom) Cawley, Mike Halamka, Joseph, Jared and Jenna Smith, Candace Dobert; Kelley Eisenhart; her great-grandchildren Kathleen, Robert and William Dobert and Samantha York; and many nieces and nephews. A special thank you to her doctor, Dr. Shannon Brown, and her “new” friends from Hospice; Jean, Lori, Charsie, Ruthie, Deanna, Ron and the rest of her team.