Marilyn Emma (O’Kane) Wanty passed away on April 8, 2022, at her home at Silver Maples of Chelsea. Before her death, she was visited by her two sons, James (Diane) and Douglas (Suzanne) Wanty, and her five grandchildren: Kit Wanty-Lambert (Adam), Erin (J.P.) Dahdah, Jamie Wanty, Cooper (Amanda), and Isabel (Lindy); and her five great-grandchildren: Ava and Forest (Jim) Morgeson, Lillianna and J.P. II Dahdah, Jessica Brooks, and Hugh Wanty.
She was born to James J. and Hazel (Seagert) O’Kane in Ann Arbor, MI, on November 21, 1924. She grew up living with her parents, and grandparents, William and Emma Seagert, at the corner of Huron and Glen streets in Ann Arbor, and she attended Angel Elementary School. Marilyn would walk across the field behind the dorms and write her name in the snow. She could hear the co-eds yell out their dorm windows, “Hi Marilyn,” as she walked home.
Marilyn met her future husband of 71 years, Hugh M. Wanty, at Ann Arbor High School. He preceded her in death in 2016. They married after Hugh graduated from the University of Michigan in 1945. Marilyn graduated from the University of Michigan a year later with a Business Administration degree.
Marilyn and Hugh joined her father’s business in 1948. The beer distribution business became O & W, Inc. and continues with her grandchildren. Marilyn and Hugh had three sons: James and Douglas of Ann Arbor, MI, and Brian of Eugene, Oregon. Marilyn was in her wheelhouse raising the boys. She would play catch, help capture turtles and frogs, and take the boys to swimming, little league, camps, and tennis, while attending the games and concerts they were part of.
Marilyn enjoyed participating in many clubs and community events. She maintained many friendships from her high school days. She loved playing bridge with anybody. Her secret pleasure was ironing. She would hum to herself as she flattened our shirts, pants, and underwear. Her family and the family business came first. She took a keen interest in the stock market, and, at the age of 96, declared it was time to move out of growth stocks and into income stocks, a task most investment advisors recommend for a person in their 60s.
As her children became adults, Marilyn spent more time in the business, retiring with Hugh in 1989. After enjoying many summers in Chelsea and winters in Arizona, they moved into Silver Maples. Marilyn was most appreciative of the love and assistance she received in her final years from her daughter-in-law, Suzanne, as well as Jane Kelly and April Hurst, and many others.
A private service will be held, and she will be buried next to her husband, parents, and grandparents at Forest Hill Cemetery in Ann Arbor. The Rev. Kathy Schell will officiate. Memorial contributions can be made to Silver Maples of Chelsea or the Arbor Hospice Foundation. Arrangements by Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home, Chelsea.
