Virginia Lynn Hiber

Virginia Lynn (“Ginny”) Hiber (née Hopson) passed away peacefully and surrounded by family at the age of 84 on Friday, March 7, 2025. She was born in Long Beach, California in August of 1940 to Edna and Walter (“Bud”) Hopson. She spent most of her formative years in Yuma, Arizona, with her younger brother Walter (“Buddy”).

Ginny was a lifelong reader and loved to learn. She was a National Merit Finalist and earned a scholarship to Arizona State College at Flagstaff (now Northern Arizona University) where she began studying in 1958. There she met Albert (Al) Alvarez, whom she married in 1959. Al and Ginny had three children: David, Kerry, and Mary (Robin).

After Ginny and Al divorced, while working as a secretary at the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Ground, she met engineer Fred Hiber. They married in 1965 and had a daughter, Emily, two years later. Fred began a new job at Chrysler Corporation, which brought the family to the Detroit area, where Ginny’s youngest child, Amanda, was born. Ginny and Fred were active members of Trinity Episcopal Church in Farmington Hills.

In 1979, Ginny and Fred separated (and later divorced), and she completed her bachelor’s degree at Oakland University in Rochester Hills, Michigan. Soon thereafter, she began a career in computer programming, working for the IRS, EDS, and Ford Credit. She then pivoted to the non-profit sector and worked as a fundraiser and grant writer at YouthBuild in Detroit. During this time, she enjoyed gardening at her home in Pleasant Ridge and was heavily involved at the Nativity Episcopal Church in Birmingham. She took a windjammer cruise off the Maine coast in her 40s and spent a week whitewater rafting in the Grand Canyon for her 50th birthday.

Ginny moved to southwest Detroit in 1999. She developed an interest in genealogy and spent countless hours researching her roots. In 2005, she retired, which gave her more time for reading, spending time with friends and family, and traveling. She accompanied her daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter on a trip to China, and traveled to Northern Ireland to attend a genealogy conference and research ancestors from that region.

Ginny’s commitment to social justice was central component of her adult life. In the 1960s, she campaigned for the inclusion of a Black History Month curriculum in the Royal Oak Public Schools (which her children attended). In the 1980s, she worked to stop nuclear weapons proliferation. She became more concerned about climate change in her 50s and 60s, and altered her lifestyle to live in a simpler, more environmentally responsible way.

In 2014, Ginny moved from Detroit to Tampa, Florida to be closer to her two oldest daughters. She was lovingly cared for in her final years by her daughter Robin, son-in-law Dave, and the staff at Promise Pointe Memory Care.

Ginny loved books, music, Detroit, the Arizona desert, Mexican food (with a Dos Equis), PBS, and nearly every type of dessert. She was immensely proud of her five children; she loved (and liked, she often pointed out) each of them for who they were and supported them, no matter what paths they took. She taught them to live honestly and with integrity, and to stand up for themselves, their beliefs, and vulnerable people.

Her seven grandchildren – Samantha (Al), Angelique, Paul, Damien (née Syd), Lian, Abigail, and Nathan – were a major highlight of Ginny’s life. In 2021, she became a great-grandmother to Rowan (daughter of Samantha), whom she adored.

In addition to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Ginny leaves behind her brother, Bud (Lynn) Hopson; her children David, Kerry (Mark) Neujahr, Robin (Dave) Endsley, Emily (Peter) Hiber, Amanda (Ben) Hiber; and her beloved cat, Danny.

A private family ceremony celebrating Ginny’s life will be held at a later date. The family would appreciate any donations made in honor of Ginny to the United Farm Workers or the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.