Therese Gutowski

With her outgoing, bubbly, and fun-loving personality, Therese Gutowski was the sort of person everyone wanted to be around. She worked hard and was a firm believer in always doing her best, but she also took the time to relax and enjoy life along the way. Therese was a devoted family woman who cherished her role as a mother, but she just may have argued that nothing was better than being a grandmother. She was a woman of faith who found such strength, joy, and grace in reading her Bible, and it was clear to see that it was her faith that guided the steps she took. Truly beautiful on the inside and out, Therese will be deeply missed and forever remembered.

Although the 1920s were primarily prosperous days, the 1930s were drastically different as the entire decade was cloaked in the hardship of the Great Depression. With jobs that were hard to come by, the unemployment rate soared, and things only became more trying when a drought covered our nation’s heartland for nearly two years, adding strain to an already crippled agricultural industry. Despite the trials around them, Walter and Sophie Maciag were filled with great excitement as they were eagerly anticipating the birth of their new baby as fall colored the city of Wyandotte, Michigan, in all her vibrant colors in 1934. Their wait was over on October 31st when the baby girl they named Therese L. made her arrival. She was one of seven children in her family and was raised in the family home in the Detroit area alongside her siblings, Joan, Margaret, Paul, Walter, Alvin, and MaryJane.

In many ways, Therese was a young girl of her generation. She helped work in her Grandma Sophie Maciag’s bakery where she was the look-out for anyone trying to take pastries. Therese lived only one street over from her Grandma Josephine Wieczorek and enjoyed going over to her house to play and to cook together. Most days, she even walked over there for lunch during the school day, which were times that meant so much to Therese. She liked ice skating at the park near her grandma’s house, going into Wyandotte to see a matinee on Saturdays for only a nickel, and also going to Neisner’s Dime Story Soda Fountain for a treat. As a teen, Therese found a bit of mischief at times such as the time she took her sisters for a ride in her father’s car without permission just a short time after she got her driver’s license. At least the girls were smart about it as they placed stones where his car was parked so they could return it to exactly the same place without getting caught! Therese also used to drive her friends to the local drive-in movie to meet guys, and it was Therese who gave her sister, JoAnn, her first Kool cigarette. She had pizza for the first time while in Dearborn as a young adult.

Life was forever changed for Therese when she met the young man of her dreams. He was a young serviceman named Anthony Gutowski, and they met while he was home on leave from the military and visiting a friend at the Penobscot Building in Detroit where Therese was working as a secretary. Anthony was smitten with her right from the start, and the rest is history as they say. They dated during which time they especially loved taking picnics with some of Therese’s mom’s fried chicken. After dating for a time, Therese and Anthony were married. Together they were blessed to welcome five children into their hearts and home including Roy, Adam, Aaron, Jill, and Neil.

When it came to being a wife, mother, and homemaker, Therese made it seem easy. She was her kids’ constant support system and was there to encourage them when things got tough in school. One of her favorite things to tell her kids was, “If you throw enough mud against the wall, some of it is going to stick.” To this day, Jill appreciates having had that piece of wisdom to draw from while studying. Therese was a great cook, and dinner always included a special dessert, too. She encouraged her children to go on to college since she never had that option, and she was also quick to advise them to finish their education prior to having the added responsibilities of a family. Always so wise, Jill is also glad that she listened to her mother when she told her to take that trip of a lifetime! Therese used to pick her son, Neil, up from school in Roy’s car at lunchtime, and together they went to the park to have McDonald’s for lunch. At times Neil was late in returning, but Therese was always sure to call the principal to explain.

In addition to caring for her family, Therese kept busy in other ways. She spent her career working as a secretary, but she also worked the perfume counter. When encouraged by the store manager she brought home the extra samples! Therese also loved her side publishing business, Refund-o-Rama, in which she traded coupons and rebates with other coupon enthusiasts. She loved reading the Bible, and when her children were little she looked forward to getting out of the house to play Bingo. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles was her favorite movie as well as other older classics. Therese and Anthony did some extensive traveling over the years as members of the NOMADS Flying Club. They traveled to places all over the United States, Europe, the Caribbean Islands, and South America where she would always tell stories about the vivid colors people wore, the children, and taking a terrifying bus ride up a mountain!

All who knew Therese Gutowski would agree that she was an extraordinary woman to know and love. She was friendly and could strike up a conversation with anyone, which meant that a stranger was never a stranger for very long. Sharing the best shopping deals was Therese’s specialty, and her family and friends knew she was always the one to check in with when looking to get the most bang for their buck. It was easy to see that there was no greater gift in her life than her family, and it was when surrounded by her loved ones that Therese was truly happy. Although life will never be the same without Therese here, her children and grandchildren will proudly carry on her timeless legacy for years to come.

Therese L. Gutowski died on June 22, 2015. Therese’s family includes her husband, Anthony; children, Roy (Nancy), Adam (Julie), Aaron (Janice), Jill (Ronald) Wright and Neil (Rachel); grandchildren, Nicholas and Natalie Wright, Grant and Adeline Gutowski as well as Ethan and Meghan Gutowski. Visit with Therese’s family and friends from 11 a.m. until time of service at 1 p.m. at our Neely-Turowski Life Story Funeral Home; 30200 Five Mile (between Merriman and Middlebelt). Interment Glen Eden Cemetery. Sign the guest book and share memories at: www.TurowskiLifeStory.com