Vail Thomas Hardman, 89, of Clinton Township, died Feb. 2, 2008, at Henry Ford Macomb Hospital. He was born Sept. 13, 1918, in Hersey, Mich. Mr. Hardman was a World War II Army veteran. He retired from Ford Motor Co. in 1977. Mr. Hardman is survived by his wife, Joan Hardman; daughter Nancy Jo; step-children Sandra Jo (Tom Leslie) Davis, Pamela Trubiano, Janice Krueger and Donald (Karen) Krueger Jr.; grandchildren Joni, Tammy, Christy, Mick, Gary Jr., Aaron, Will, Samantha, Devon, Joey, Shaylin, Caleb, Colin, Connor, Carson and Colton; great-grandchildren Courtney, Nicholas, Tiffany, Kayla, Joshua, Jaden, Brennan, Joey, Megan, Jacob, Dakota, Chloe and Jenna; niece Judy Kline and numerous other nieces and nephews. Visitation Tuesday, 5-8 p.m., will be at Resurrection Funeral Home, 40800 Hayes Road, Clinton Township. Mr. Hardman will lie in state Wednesday, 12:30 p.m., until the 1 p.m. service at Bethany Baptist Church. Burial will be at White Chapel Cemetery.

Published in The Daily Tribune on February 5, 2008.

Robert Warren Ciske, 51, a proud teacher at Mercy High School, Farmington Hills, died Sunday, Feb. 3, 2008, in Hazel Park. He was born Feb. 22, 1956, in Royal Oak. Mr. Ciske grew up in Royal Oak. He graduatedfrom Kimball High School in 1974 and the University of Detroit Mercy in 1990. He was high school mathematics teacher at Mercy for 16 years. In December 2007 he became too ill to continue teaching. Mr. Ciske was very athletic and enjoyed participating in all sports including baseball, softball, bowling and golf However, golf was his passion. He was a member of the Grand Beech Golf League. He loved his job and he cared a great deal about his colleagues and students, as they did for him. He was awarded teacher of the year. Mr. Ciske also was an avid gardener, an avid Tigers fan, and a huge University of Michigan fan. He was the dear son of Ery and Sandy Ciske; loving brother and friend of James Ciske, Bill Ciske and Sandy Ciske; beloved Uncle of Sam and Steven Ciske; and dear friend of Judy Fried and stepfather of Jennifer Austin. He also is survived by many loving friends, students and colleagues. Memorial gathering, 2-7 p.m. Saturday at A. J. Desmond & Sons Funeral Home, 2600 Crooks Road, Troy; memories sharing service, 3 p.m. Saturday at the funeral home; in lieu of flowers memorial tributes may be made to: Mercy High School, In memory of Robert Ciske, 29300 11 Mile Road, Farmington Hills, MI 48336; share memories at obit.desmondfuneralhome.com.

Published in The Daily Tribune on February 6, 2008.

Virginia Giddings Howard, of Glendale, Ariz.., passed away on Feb. 1, 2008. She is survived by her husband of 62 years, Guy, her children Guy II, Dean, and Anne Marie, her grandchildren Alyssa, Clayton, Steven, Mark, Glen, and Scott, and great-grandson, Shane. She was born Friday, April 13, 1923, in Chicago, Ill. to Paul and Anna Pearl Giddings. After her father's death in 1933, her family moved to Michigan and eventually settled in Troy. There she met, fell in love with, and later married a handsome, blond-haired, blue-eyed boy that lived up the street. She was a graduate of Log Cabin High School where she excelled, among other things, in making life-long friends. During World War II, she joined the Air Force to "free a man for overseas duty". She later said she enjoyed her Air Force experience because it enabled her to travel to new places and meet people from all over the U.S. She was a very intelligent and quick-witted woman who always had time to sit and chat with a friend over a cup of tea. She loved her family, her brothers, Paul and Dean (who were her heroes), her friends, a good joke, a beautiful sunset, a beautiful sunrise, road trips, window shopping, Sousa marches and Strauss waltzes, collecting antiques, trains, writing letters to friends, getting letters from friends, working crossword puzzles, deer spotting in the U.P., and even though she didn't drink, she loved a good party. She suffered her personal losses in private and even during the worst times maintained her dignity. She always treated everyone as she wished to be treated, so regardless of their situation in life, her attitude was one of respect and compassion and will always be remembered for her generosity, inner beauty, sparkling blue eyes, beautiful smile and wonderful sense of humor. Her spirit will be in our hearts forever. She is preceded in death by her sons, Robert Bedford and Jon Frederic. Visitation Friday 11 a.m. until time of service 12 noon at Wm. Sullivan & Son Funeral Home, 705 W. 11 Mile Road, Royal Oak. Burial at White Chapel Cemetery in Troy. Memorials to Alzheimer's Association, Greater Michigan Chapter, 20300 Civic Center Drive, Suite 100, Southfield, MI 48076 or Michigan Humane Society, Attn: Honorariums and Memorials, 30300 Telegraph Road, Suite 220, Bingham Farms, MI 48025-4507. Online information www.sullivanfuneraldirectors

Published in The Daily Tribune on February 6, 2008.

Jess Joseph Perreca Sr., 61, of Royal Oak died Tuesday, February 5, 2008, at his home. He was born Dec. 8, 1946, in Detroit to Joseph and Lena (Poma) Perreca Mr. Perreca was a beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend. A 34-year resident .of Royal Oak, he owned Kwik Fix TV Land in Detroit until 1987 and then worked as a district manager for the Daily Tribune until January 2007. He was an active volunteer with the Boys and Girls Clubs of South Oakland County and led the holiday basket program for 25 years. Mr. Perreca also served as a coach, director and as president of the Royal Oak Baseball Federation for nearly 20 years. He enjoyed helping others and spending time at his cottage on the lake. He was honored over the years for his community involvement and received the J.C. Penney Golden Rule Award and was named Citizen of the Year by the city of Royal Oak in 1994. Surviving are his wife Bonnie (McDonald), whom he married March 9, 1973, in Warren; sons, Brandon (Stacey) and Jess Jr.; sister, Beatrice (Sal) Serra; brothers, William (Marilyn) Perreca and Joseph (Fran) Perreca; and grandchildren, Victor, 13, and Jesse, 7 months. He was predeceased by his parents. Visitation 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the Kinsey Garrett Funeral Home, 420 S. Lafayette, Royal Oak; service, 11 a.m. Saturday at Renaissance Unity Church, 11200 E. 11 Mile Road (between Van Dyke and Hoover roads), Warren; in lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Boys and Girls Clubs of South Oakland County's Holiday Basket Program at 1545 East Lincoln," Royal Oak, MI 48067, or online at www.boysandgirlsclubs.us; share memories at www.Kinsey-garrett.com. In accordance with Mr. Perreca's wishes, he will be cremated and a private memorial service will be held at a future date at Six Lakes Cemetery, Six Lakes, Mich.

Published in The Daily Tribune on February 6, 2008.