Margaret Ann Holewinski, 84, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, passed away peacefully on Sunday afternoon, September 8, 2024.  Margaret's gentle voice will forever echo in the memories of those who loved her and she will be remembered for the passion for life and the love she instilled in those around her.

Margaret was born on November 13, 1939 in Green Bay to the late Evelyn and Louis Sparr.  Margaret attended Green Bay West High School, graduating in 1958. On October 2, 1965, she married Gene Holewinski (on his birthday) and they moved into their home on Green Bay's west side.  Margaret and Gene were married for over 58 years and raised 5 children at their home, which was the site for many gatherings and great memories.

Margaret was a dedicated and loving mother.   It was very important to Margaret and Gene for their children to receive a good education and they worked hard to make sure that all their kids were able to attend Catholic schools in Green Bay.  She worked in the St. Agnes grade school cafeteria and did other odd jobs to help pay for private school tuition for her kids.  Margaret wanted her kids to go to college and she and Gene were selfless putting their family first so that her kids could have a better life.  To achieve this goal, she created an unconventional family Bank of sorts – making loans for college or cars or whatever the kids needed, expecting repayment when her kids were able, and then reloaning it to the next child to go to college. It was quite fascinating really, the way she kept track of the debits and credits with old school savings passbook accounts and sticky notes, shunning fancy excel spreadsheets.  But everything was always balanced to the penny.  When one of her children got a real job and began receiving a paycheck, their top priority was to pay back the "Bank of Mom" so the money could be loaned out to the next child in need of financing.   The BOM did not require any interest payments and she always got repaid in full.  Her kids learned the value of hard work and supporting the family.  Her dedication to her children and the importance of family has made the family closer today.

Margaret loved spending time with her children and grandchildren.  She would travel great distances to see them and would try to time visits to escape the cold weather in Green Bay.  She never came with an agenda and always was up for adventures, a walk, or babysitting to give weary parents a break.  Thanksgivings were a very special holiday at Margaret's house, especially with the grandchildren.  She insisted that all 5 of her grown children and their families stay at the house ("why would you spend money on a hotel?", she would say).  As the family grew, she always found a spot for everyone.  She and Grandpa Gene would sleep on couches in the basement so her kids and grandchildren had a bed.  She would do most of the cooking, timing the turkey perfectly so the family could eat at halftime of the first NFL game that day.  She never sat down to enjoy the meal herself, instead she was where she loved to be, in the kitchen bringing out heaping bowls of mashed potatoes or stuffing or hot sticky buns and green beans.  She was at her best when the house was full of family.  Her grandkids all loved her home full of boxes of books, Fisher Price toys, cardboard bricks for building stuff and other great toys that she had painstakingly saved for these occasions.  In addition, Margaret and Gene would host all of the family that was available to come during the summer.  The Green Bay family gatherings always included a kitchen with hot beef or sloppy Joe's and chicken soup, at least one trip to Sammy's Pizza, Chili John's or Kroll's plus early morning attendance at Packers football practices, a visit to the Packer Pro Shop, riding the Zippin Pippin and train at Bay Beach, and a quiet afternoon at Loon Lake.

Margaret was a loyal and enthusiastic sports fan.  She loved the Green Bay Packers and the Wisconsin Badgers.  She loved attending UW games with Ann and especially watching the Badger marching band, as they did their rendition of the 5th quarter.  She scoured the Green Bay Gazette for Packers updates that she would send to her kids out of state and even did "Clay Matthews" workout exercises.  Margaret worked at Lambeau field for many years on game days as well as Packer training camps where she served as the unofficial Packer mom.  She made sure the players buffet line was always stocked for her favorite Packer players that included Lynn Dickey, Gilbert Brown and of course Clay Matthews.  She also loved nature   and was an avid walker and she loved feeding the birds and the squirrels and catching frogs at Lilly Lake.  One of her favorite pastimes was making peanut butter sandwiches and then watching the squirrels eat the peanut butter in the middle and leave behind two pieces of bread.  She was proud of her squirrels and their portly size.  She also loved her ice cream.  She could exist on fruit and ice cream, and she frequently did so during the summer months. She was always complaining about how she was cheated when the half gallon ice creams were downsized.

Margaret is survived by her five children, Paul (Amy) Holewinski, Mary Beth (Curt) Webster, David (Lisa) Holewinski, Ann Holewinski, Tom (Jin) Holewinski; her nine grandchildren, Mark, Kate, John, Ben, Evelyn, Evan, Nora, Ella, and Sam; and brother, Arnie Sparr.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Gene Holewinski; son, Mark; as well as her parents.

A visitation will be held at Fort Howard Memorial Park, 1350 North Military Ave, on Thursday, September 12 at 9:30 am followed by a short memorial service at 10:00. To send online condolences, please go to www.BlaneyFuneralHome.com.

The family would like to extend their gratitude to the staffs of Woodside Villa and of Unity Hospice for their wonderful care.