Donald Hugger

With a fair wind and a following sea, Donald Hugger crossed the bar on Friday, February 21^st surrounded by his loving family. He was 102 years of age.

Born in Holland, Michigan on June 16, 1922, Don was the son of Daniel and Susie (Smeenge) Hugger.

In October of 1942, Don enlisted in the U.S. Navy earning certifications as gunnery instructor, navigator, legal officer and personnel officer. He was commissioned as Ensign in October of 1945, and served at Cecil Field Naval Air Station in Jacksonville FL; Olathe Naval Air Station in Olathe, KS; and Honolulu Naval Air Station in Honolulu, HI. He was honorably discharged from the service in May of 1946.

Following his military service, he enrolled at Michigan State College under the GI Bill where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration. While attending Michigan State, he met the love of his life, Ann. They were married in 1950 in Ypsilanti, MI, and eventually settled in Grand Rapids to raise their family of one daughter and three sons. Together, they shared 59 wonderful years of marriage until Ann’s passing in 2009.

Don was employed by SS Kresge Corporation, American Hospital Supply, and finally joined IBM Corporation as a senior sales representative. He retired in 1983 at the age of 61.

In 1965, the couple discovered boating and took the plunge, purchasing a 35-foot Chris Craft cabin cruiser, named her “Kim” and docked “Kim” in Grand Haven. This was the start of a 51-year love of boating. Summers involved packing four kids, the family dog, and sometimes Grandma aboard the boat and cruising up and down the Lake Michigan coast. Eventually, they purchased a Grand Banks trawler and based the new “Kim” in Mackinaw City and Hessel.

Don continued living alone aboard the boat each summer for eleven years after Ann passed. In 2021, at the age of 99, he begrudgingly swallowed the anchor and sold his beloved trawler. All told, Don and family cruised 33,300 miles on the Great Lakes, leaving behind a legacy of friends at every port.

Don never met a person he didn’t like. Through his sales work with IBM, his list of acquaintances and friends grew exponentially. His children recall not being able to walk the aisle of a grocery store or down the docks of most any marina without their father running into friends and spending time catching up and telling jokes.

A friendly smile and a warm handshake were his hallmark. Moreover, he had an uncanny ability to remember names. While living at Sentinel Pointe he would often join a resident sitting alone in the dining room, introduce himself, and strike up a friendly conversation with his new friend. He took pride in managing the facility’s library and overseeing the grandfather clock in the lobby. He became the unofficial mayor of Sentinel Pointe.

Don is survived by daughter Kim (Wilson) and her husband Rick of Ada; and sons: Ted and his wife, Jill of Damariscotta, ME; Eric and his wife Tami of Ada; and Jeff and his wife Diana of Shelbyville. Eight grandchildren also survive him: Matthew Hugger and wife Michelle; Kelly Laflin and her husband, Jared; Michael Wilson and his wife, Erin; Laine Van Dyken and her husband, Jeff; Daniel Hugger and his wife, Sarah; Leslie Hugger and her fiancé, Bruce Couturier; Paige VanDam, Kirsten VanDam and his long-time friend and co-raconteur, Bob Huppert. Don was also blessed with six great-grandchildren.

In 2021, Lakeland Boating Magazine published a feature article about Don’s exploits on the Great Lakes entitled “51 Years Afloat.” The article can be found at this link:

https://issuu.com/lakelandboating/docs/lb_oct21_dig/40

In lieu of flowers, please consider a check or money order donation to Friends of the Les Cheneaux Community Library (LCCL), Don Hugger Memorial, P.O. Box 99, Cedarville, MI 49719  Tel: 906-484-3547

Crossing the Bar

Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea,

But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.

Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;

For tho’ from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crost the bar.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson