Henry P.’s Obituary Henry P. “Hank” Borgman, December 7, 1925-January 14, 2019 We mourn the loss of our beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and good friend, Henry P. “Hank” Borgman. He passed away peacefully, with his family around him, on January 14, 2019, age 93. Please join us in a celebration of Hank’s life on Saturday, January 19.
Visiting hours are 10-11am, with an informal service conducted by family to follow at 11am at the Thayer-Rock Funeral Home. Burial will be private. He will rest eternally at Grand Lawn Cemetery, next to his beloved wife of 65 years, Betty, and adjacent to his mother, Madeline Wardle Borgman and Betty’s parents, Ruth and Walter Champoux.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the library where Hank and Betty first met in 1947: Betty Champoux Borgman and Henry P. Borgman Memorial Library Fund Wayne State University, David Adamany Undergraduate Library 5150 Anthony Wayne, Suite 3100, Detroit, MI 48202 (Donation envelopes will be available at Thayer-Rock; for further information, please contact Jim Dauer, Wayne State University Libraries, 313-577-2822) Hank and Betty’s daughter, Cindy, preceded them in death in 2006; Betty departed in 2012; Hank’s sister, Ann, departed in 1973. Hank and Betty’s immediate descendants are: Four children: Christine Borgman (George Mood), Cindy Mika (Patrick), Bradley Borgman (Sue), Peter Borgman (Tacy) Four grandchildren: Michael Mood (Vanina), Katie Mika (Fred Dechow), Stephanie Borgman, Elizabeth Borgman One great-grandchild: Paloma Mood Hank’s extended family and friends are spread around the globe. Those unable to join us in a snowy Michigan winter will be remembered at the celebration of his life.
Hank grew up on a small farm near Franklin Road and Telegraph avenue, in what is now Southfield, Michigan. His parents built the Vineyards restaurant on that land, a charming old stone building with big fireplaces, candles dripping down on Chianti bottles, and white linen napkins. His mother cooked, his dad ran the front of the house, and he and his sister, Ann, waited tables.
The bombing of Pearl Harbor on Hank’s 16th birthday was the defining event of his life. He enlisted at 17 and was overseas at 18. In the infantry, he met Marty Seidenberg, a kid from the south side of Chicago, who became his closest friend for life.
Hank didn’t talk much about his war experiences, but Grayce said they were lucky to get honorable discharges, if half of what they told us was true! Only in later years did he tell us some of the horrors of helping to clear Bergen-Belsen, the concentration camp where Ann Frank died. Hank was among the large cohort of returning veterans seeking college admittance on the GI bill.
While waitlisted at MIT for an engineering degree, he met Betty at Wayne University in Detroit. She was a senior, working her way through college as a library assistant. He romanced her at the library, so persuasively that she married him three months later, in January, 1948.
When MIT offered him admission, he turned them down, having set his lifepath in Michigan with Betty. Marty married Grayce, his sweetheart, about the same time. The two families intertwined, alternating various holidays between Detroit and Chicago, camping trips, and other expeditions.
Hank and Marty took their wives to Europe to revisit Paris, London, and other places they’d experienced in the war. Betty and Hank had three romantic years together before their children arrived – two girls and two boys in less than eight years, from 1951 to 1958. Ours was a joyful household of kids, pets, and legendary water fights.
Despite some financial challenges, with Hank working two jobs and Betty working one full-time job at home and a part-time job at the library, everyone had food, clothes, and school supplies. We always had room for one more at dinner, or for one more kid on a camping trip. Outdoor time and reading were maximized; TV time was minimized.
They put all four of us through college, another life goal for them. We’ve all been successful in marriages, in careers, and life goals, another credit to Hank and Betty’s parenting. Hank and Betty made many fast friends over the course of their 65-year marriage, many of which have extended to the next generations.
Camping trips with the Seidenbergs, Ballmers, Lochers, and others brought the children together. Similarly, the kids played cards or other games together while the parents played bridge. Many of those bridge players, or their children, or their grandchildren will join us for the celebration of Hank’s life.
While he missed Betty every day of these last six years, he cherished the family ties and friendships established over the course of his 93 years.
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