Eva Margaret Larsen

Eva Margaret (Margi) Larsen died July 8, 2021 after sustaining injuries from a fall. She was born February 13, 1930 in Dodgeville, WI to Ralph F.P. and Jewel (Tobin) Hoyt. She lived in many Wisconsin communities throughout her childhood and moved 13 times before arriving in Sturgeon Bay in 1943.

She attended Sturgeon Bay High School (SBHS) and became Door County’s 1948 Cherry Pie Baking Queen her senior year. When the city began looking for the director of the first Sturgeon Bay Youth Center, Margi served as the high school’s representative on the hiring committee. Her preferred candidate, the handsome Jim Larsen, got the job and won her heart. Margi and Jim were married in 1951 and raised four children together.

Music and singing were her lifelong passions. She sang soprano in the SBHS choir, Ripon College and Chapel choirs, and Bay View Lutheran Church choir. Talented and versatile, she sang bass for The Trouble Clefs, a women’s barbershop quartet. Margi performed hundreds of solos at weddings and funerals. Her musical talents live on through her son Ben and granddaughters Maren and Lily.

Margi was active in her community throughout her life. She worked at the Corner House Shops, Wigwam Nursey and retired from SBHS as a library aide. She was an active member of the Sturgeon Bay Women’s Golf Association and orchestrated her own golf tournament – the Margi Larsen Open – for 16 years. Margi was the first to lead Crossroads at Big Creek’s fundraising efforts – from coffee can coin collections to capital campaigns, she found great joy in serving her community. After her husband Jim died in 2000, she embraced the formation of the local Boys & Girls Club to honor his contribution to Door County’s youth. She was honored as the club’s first Lifetime Board Member in 2012. In a word, she was a giver.

Margi was a consummate hostess with an engaging and varied social life. She loved throwing cocktail parties on her patio and receiving drop-ins on her davenport. She provided generous and gracious hospitality at every party and family gathering. A gregarious guest at pizza nights, evening bridge games, ladies’ luncheons, and coffee catch-ups after church, Margi not only lit up a room, she made others feel welcomed and valued in her light. In her later life, Margi remained surrounded by friends, family, blue willow dishes, and decorative bunnies while she persevered through the debilitating effects of Alzheimer’s Disease. Her gratitude, love, wit, and kindness endured to the end.

She is preceded in death by her parents, stepmother Mildred (Kirk) Hoyt, husband, and siblings Don Hoyt, Harold Hoyt, and Edith Rickmeyer. She was the beloved mother of Chris (Connie), Tobin (Cassandra), Susan (Neil Howk), and Ben Larsen. Her grandchildren were her pride and joy. They are: Chris’s children James (Kayla), Stewart, and Lily; Tobin’s children Thomas and Timothy (Alyssa); Susan’s children Forrest (Samantha) and Sophia Howk; and Ben’s children Maren and Maxwell. Margi’s great-grandchildren are Beau (father: James) and Maggie, Annie, and Archie (father: Stewart). She will also be remembered by Tobin’s stepchildren Jennifer (Ruston, daughter Madalyn), Steve, and Jeff.

A memorial service will be held at the Bay View Lutheran Church on Friday July 16 at 1:00 P.M with a short visitation prior to the service.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Boys & Girls Club of Door County in Margi’s memory.