Donell "Donnie" "#1" Hodge

HODGE, Mr. Donell "Donnie" " #1" - age 58, passed away, Thursday, February 2, 2017 at St Joseph Mercy Hospital Oakland. Family hour 10:30AM Friday, February 10, 2017 at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, 512 Pearsall Ave., with funeral service commencing immediately at 11AM. Pastor Terrance J. Gowdy, officiating. Interment Perry Mount Park Cemetery, 878 North Perry St. Friends and pallbearers will assemble at the church 10:30AM Friday. Mr. Hodge will lie in state at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, 512 Pearsall Ave., and may be viewed from 1:00 PM – 8:00 PM Thursday at the Church. Donell Hodge, the youngest of six children, was born December 30, 1958 in Pontiac, Michigan to Mr. And Mrs. Joe and Verna Hodge Jr. He accepted Christ at an early age and was baptized at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church. Donell was educated in the Pontiac School System and was a graduate of Pontiac Central High School. While in school he played and enjoyed the game of football (nickname AKA “Black Steel”) He was a Cadet in the Pontiac Police Department and later worked for General Motors. In 1997, Donell met and married Dianne Sledge at New Bethel Missionary Baptist Church. He was a devoted husband, father, son, brother and a friend extraordinaire. He enjoyed cooking and drinking a “good pot of coffee” also conversation as well as his favorite sister, Gwen’s pinto beans. Donell leaves to cherish his loving memory: his wife, Dianne of nineteen years; son, Donell (Tamala) Roach of Canton, MI; step-daughter, Sherry Elizabeth Sledge of Tuscaloosa, AL; parents, Joe and Verna Hodge Jr; brothers, Willie Fred (Gloria) Hodge, Vernon Hodge; sisters, Joe Ann (Milton) Evans, Gwendolyn Gibson of Pontiac, MI, Barbara (Darryl) Percival of Roswell, GA, Charlotte Pickett of Pontiac, MI; aunts, Beatrice Blake-Smith of Detroit, MI and Carleen Branner of Auburn Hills, MI; uncle, Sam Jones Jr. of Marshall, TX; mother-in-law, Ida Mae Sledge of Tuscaloosa, AL; sisters-in-law, Jackie Hodge of Pontiac, MI, Mary Gordon and Patricia Sledge; brothers-in-law, Baylock Sledge III and Johnnie Lee of Tuscaloosa, AL; five grandchildren; two great grandchildren; several nieces, nephews, relatives and friends including a close cousin and his “road buddy”, Isaiah Branner. Donell was preceded in death by his grandparents, Sam and Allie Jones and Gladys Matlock; and father-in-law, Rev. Baylock Sledge, Jr.; Donell, we will miss you, your smile, your telephone calls at all times of the day, going out for breakfast and your laughter. Blessings brother for we know you are now at peace. Poem

Donell "Donnie" "#1" Hodge

December 30, 1958 - February 2, 2017