Margery Ernst

Throughout Margery Ernsts life she thought of others. She was a devoted mother who was active in the lives of her children and she was filled with great joy in life when grandchildren joined the family and yet again when great grandchildren joined in. Margery was independent with a drive to succeed in the many things she was involved in. The year 1927, was filled with great joy for a young couple from Hart, Michigan, as they were pleased to announce the birth of their baby girl on September 10th . Margery Willo was the second of three children born to her parents, Raymond and Ethel (Little) Unger, although she was only raised alongside her younger sister, Myrna, as her older sister, Helen, had died before her first birthday, long before Margery was even born. Although Margerys younger years were spent on the family farm in Hart, in the 1930s,Ray and Ethel moved with the girls to Muskegon, where Raymond worked at Continental Motors and Ethel was a teacher. In many ways Margery experienced a typical upbringing for the youth of her generation, but at times wasnt afraid to push the boundaries. She loved doing things with her cousins, going to an occasional barn dance and dearly loved spending time with her grandparents. Laura Little spent much time with Margery and would read the bible to her, John Little who nick-named her Billy and Ida Unger who helped teach Margery how to play the Hawaiian guitar, although Ida promptly removed Margerys lipstick as soon as she arrived at her house. While in Muskegon, Margery attended the Muskegon Public Schools. In 1947 Margery married Ted Twinning. Although their marriage ended in divorce after a few years, Margery was forever grateful for their daughter, Judith (Judi), who was born in 1950. As a single mother she and her daughter moved in with her parents. Brighter days were on the horizon for Margery when she soon became acquainted with the man who would forever hold the key to her heart. His name was Robert Ernst. With a desire to establish their lives together, they were united in marriage on July 15, 1954. Together they welcomed their daughter, Jonette (Joni), in 1955. Their family lived in a couple of different places before eventually settling into a house in Roosevelt Park. Margery was a mother who played an active role in the lives of her children, making sure that she was there for every school and extracurricular event, and served in many organizations and activities, such as PTA, school fundraisers and church activities. As a family they took many memorable vacations to Petoskey and Indiana to visit relatives. The family also spent many summers at Ray and Ethels cottage on Mona Lake. Not only did Margery care for her family but she also kept busy with several other things. She worked a variety of jobs including a Pinkerton Detective position at Hardy-Herpolsheimers, a receptionist at Ramada Inn and a library clerk at Mona Shores High School. She also volunteered through the Cherry Guild at Hackley Hospital for over 35 years and was a member of Central Methodist Church in Muskegon During the mid-seventies they moved to Ludington when Robert became the director of social services in Mason County. They soon became members of the United Methodist Church of Ludington where Margery became part of several ladies circles. Additionally she became active in the community, became a Tupperware sales representative and later an Avon sales representative. As she loved selling Avon and visiting with people, many times Robert would have to track her down via telephone (pre-cell phone era) to find Margie. She could be found anywhere from Ludington to the Grand Rapids areas. At times she would be gone for a couple days at a time with last minute overnights at either Judis, Jonis or Ray and Ethels house. The year 1976 altered Margies focus as her first grandchild, John Rydbeck, was born. Margie eagerly embraced her new role as grandma and thoroughly enjoyed it! Four grandchildren followed, Laura Handley in 1978, Rachel Anne Rydbeck in 1979, Kenneth Handley at the beginning of 1981 and Stephen Rydbeck at the end of 1981. After Robert retired, they moved to Hudsonville in 1995, but sadly Robert died the following year. Daily life for Margie was not without times of trial, however, she took whatever came her way and dealt with it as best as she knew how. She continued to remain in contact with friends and family both from the Ludington and Muskegon areas, watched Christian television regularly and then welcomed the arrival of her great grandchildren! When great grandchildren Parker and Micah came to visit, Margie would always exclaim Its Christmas! Unfortunately, when cancer struck again the chemotherapy took a toll on Margie. She fought hard but was unable to recover from it this time. Margery will be forever missed but never forgotten. Margery Willo Ernst died on Saturday, June 7, 2014. Margerys family includes he daughter, Jonette (Donald) Rydbeck of Hudsonville; grandchildren, John (Rachel Rene) Rydbeck, Rachel Anne (Patrick) Butters, Stephen (Joy) Rydbeck, Laura (Russ) Outen, and Kenneth (Emily) Handley; great grandchildren, Parker, Micah, Isaiah, Kenny, Kailey, and Gavin; sister, Myrna Bradshaw of Grand Haven; son-in-law, Ken Handley; niece, Kimberly Bradshaw; nephews, David (Nancy) Behrmann, Douglas (Lori) Behrmann, Donald (Martha) Behrmann, and Mike (Sandy)Bradshaw. Margery was preceded in death by her husband, Robert L. Ernst in 1996; daughter, Judith Handley in 2014. A memorial service will be held on Sunday, June 22, 2014, 3:00 p.m. with visitation 1 hour prior to the service at the Clock Chapel - Muskegon. Memorial donations can be made to Charles Stanley Ministries or American Cancer Society. Please visit www.clockfuneralhome.com to leave a memory or sign the online guest book.