Brenda Artt (née LaFever) died early morning of October 21, 2023. She was predeceased by her parents, Charlie and Lula LaFever, and her loving husband of 55 years, John B. Artt III and her great-grandson Damon. She is survived by her loving sister Ruth Burgess, her 4 children, Victoria Esser, Vanessa Richardson, John T. Artt and Samantha Hess, as well as her 8 grandchildren (Andrew & Erin Esser, Travis Richardson, Eric, Michael, Kenneth & Elizabeth Artt and Destiny & Dyana Hess) and 5 great-grandchildren (Justin & River, and Logan, Jacob & Wyatt).
Our mom was always the polar opposite of our dad. When we lived in Detroit, we were the
go-to house on the block. Neighbors would just pop by and mom would break out the ice tea, a board game or a deck of cards, the ash tray for smokers and they would just sit around gabbing. The thing is, my sister and I were always invited to play, never shooed away, we were treated like we mattered. It didn’t occur to us at the time that this wasn’t how every adult was. Back before groceries were scanned and the lines were always long, mom would chat up the people in front or behind us, making friends everywhere. She was generous to a fault, giving to everyone all the while broke as heck. We drove by a homeless man one time and almost made it home, before she let out this deep sigh as she turned the car around, drove back to the deli, bought a foot long sub and gave it to the man with the last few dollars in her purse. She rescued animals like it was her duty, loved kids with all her heart, would do anything for anybody….She was one of the best friends anyone could have, she was positively fierce when it came to protecting and defending her children and we’re going to miss her more than we can say. We love you mom. Rest easy.