Joseph Marconi

Joseph V. Marconi of Rockford passed away July 31, 2014. He was born in 1934 in the family home to Italian immigrants Joseph and Rosalia Marconi in Flint, Michigan. A graduate of Flint Central High School, Flint Junior College, the University of Michigan, and the University of Illinois, he earned an Associate's degree, a Bachelors degree, and held two Masters of Arts degrees. He went on to a successful career in libraries, serving as the executive director of the Bayliss Public Library in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and the Wayne County Public Library in Wooster, Ohio. He loved to walk and traversed hundreds of miles of trails throughout Michigan. He was a voracious reader of both fiction and nonfiction. He wrote a reference book entitled Indexed Periodicals. A lifelong collector, he amassed an impressive collection of breweriana over more than 40 years, and was an enthusiastic member of several beer can collector groups. He was a volunteer for the Gilmore Auto Museum and a longtime board member of the Sault Historic Sites. He met his wife of nearly 47 years and the love of his life, Barbara, in the cafeteria line of the Detroit Public Library where they both worked at the time. Together, they loved to travel all around the United States and Europe, taking many memorable trips. He was preceded in death by his parents, infant twin brothers, a teenage sister, and his lifelong friend and sister, Laura Murray. He is survived by his wife Barbara, daughter Maggie (Andy McFarland) of Sandusky, Ohio, son Joe (Meaghan Clayton) of Chicago, Illinois, and three nieces. Memorial Services will be held 11:00 AM, Saturday, August 23, 2014 at the Stegenga Funeral Chapel, 1601 Post Dr. NE, Belmont. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Detroit Institute of Arts www.dia.org or Faith Hospice www.faithhospicecare.org. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Joseph V. Marconi please visit our Sympathy Store.