George C. FOGT

FOGT, George C. - Age 89, died June 26, 2010. Private services and interment will be in White Chapel Cemetery. Arrangements by Sharp Funeral Homes, 1000 Silver Lake Rd., Fenton. Remembering George Now there are two. Lester and I, his sister, Carol, have lost our beloved brother George. He dealt with more than he should have in the past few months but now he is at peace and we have our memories. When he was about ten or so, he made a room in our basement into a grocery store. All the empty boxes were saved, used cans were rinsed out and eventually the shelves were stocked with an impressive array of groceries of all types. The neighborhood kids would stop by and with play money and with an old cash register, many transactions were made. This was a big deal. Throughout his life, George loved baseball. It was his passion. Although he never was able to read well, he could keep track of the scores and his favorite players. For years, he was able to make the trip to the ball park by himself, eventually the time came when we became concerned for his safety as he was now getting older and Detroit had deteriorated so badly. Yet, he continued to follow the Detroit Tigers for most of his life. Putting up the Christmas tree was a major event. But there was a problem. George wanted the lights arranged, for instance, so that two blue lights would not be together. The same was true for the other colors as well. After much effort on his part, he would sit down to admire his work only to realize if he viewed the tree from a different angle, there would be those two blue lights together again. Up and at it, he would change the lights once more only to see the same result. This process continued throughout the Christmas season driving the rest of the family nuts. However, he loved doing it and we let him. George held a variety of jobs and he did them well as he was a dedicated and conscientious worker. He enjoyed them all, but his favorite was working as a janitor at a Catholic nursing home. They said he was the best worker they ever had and the nuns doted on him. One of the perks he received was the meal he was allowed each day. Oh, how George loved to eat. So this was a special treat indeed and any leftovers quickly disappeared. When the time came, George didn't completely retire from his nursing home responsibilities. Bingo games there were the highlight of the week. He had been assisting a blind man with his cards for some time and he was not about to let him down now. So, no matter the weather, George would walk the mile both ways to do his "job" on Bingo night. One of his jobs required a bus trip downtown. Each morning, he would take the same bus, as of course, many others did. The difference was that George had the habit of introducing himself to all in his vicinity. It wasn't too long before, as George boarded the bus, there was a chorus of, "Hi George," from all the passengers. Pretty neat, I think. As he and Lester walked through Henry Ford Village, George would speak to almost everyone who passed by. Finally Lester would ask, "Who was that?" George would reply that he didn't know their name but he or she was his friend. Everyone was George's friend. On Valentine's Day he titled one of his aides to be his Valentine and addressed her in that manner for weeks afterward. Sometimes when an individual left the room, even in last week of life, he would attempt to throw them a kiss. Years ago, on Mother's Day, when George was still able to shop on his own, he brought mother a lovely card. Only when she opened it, the card was a greeting for one's Grandmother. Our Mom smiled, after all it was the thought that counts and he had done his best. George had a big heart. He loved his nieces and nephews, but this brought up a question in his mind. How was it that he became an uncle many times over but was never a grandfather? He loved children, he would get down on the floor and play their games with them As if he was a child himself, which in a way he was. George loved birthdays. He kept a well worn small calendar on which we had listed all the family birthdays. He would ask Lester, "Do you know whose birthday is coming up?" Lester would play along and George would make his big announcement. He might be a few days off but that didn't matter or spoil the game they played. When his birthday was approaching, there was great anticipation. He announced this coming event to anyone who would listen as it meant so much to him. One year he had three parties, not many of us can equal that record. Marcella phrased it so well, when the other day she said to me, "We all love Georgie and he knows that we do." Yes, we all loved George, he has made the world a better place because he was there among us. He would have been ninety years old on July 10 and what a celebration that would have been. Memorials: Henry Ford Hospice 655 W 13 Mile Rd. Madison Heights, MI 48070 Tributes may be posted on the obituaries page of www.sharpfuneralhomes.com