** Memorial Service Update **
The memorial service for Rev. Martha Ball is Thursday, August 19, at 3:30 pm Eastern Time in the main chapel at the Chelsea Retirement Community, 805 W Middle Street, Chelsea, Michigan 48118.
Martha Gregg Ball (née Curtis) of Chelsea MI died in her sleep on June 3, 2021 after a long illness. She was 83.
Martha Jo Curtis was born in Toledo, Ohio on January 25, 1938, where she grew up in a family of civil servants, teachers, and librarians. A gifted student, musician, and athlete, she was graduated valedictorian of the DeVilbiss High School class of 1956 and then earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Michigan. She married her college sweetheart, Ronald D. Gregg, and taught school in Cambridge, MA, and Dundee, MI while he began his legal career. The couple finally settled in Ann Arbor for several years raising their children, David and Sara, until separated by divorce in 1979.
Martha began her second phase of adulthood heeding the call to ministry. She was trained at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, OH, and was ordained as an elder in the United Methodist Church in 1987. She served churches in Ann Arbor, Wayne, Britton, and Hudson, MI. While in Britton, she wed her second husband, Ben Ball. They shared a passion for ministry and became missionaries at the Henderson Settlement in eastern Kentucky.
Martha lived a life of adventure and service. She traveled widely, including multiple visits to Europe and Canada as well as to Haiti, Mexico, Kenya, Israel, and Belize. She was a great lover of music, poetry, and art. But her deepest passion was the service of the Church. A true Methodist, she worked constantly under the conviction that human beings are beloved of God and capable of becoming more than they currently are. She was a lifelong advocate for social justice, racial reconciliation, and empowerment for the marginalized. And as part of the first large wave of women in ordained ministry, she was a mentor and role model for many other women likewise called to serve.
Martha is survived by her son David Gregg, her daughter Sara (Jim) Barnes, her grandsons Colin, Alex, & Scott Barnes, her nieces Vicky Geha and Janie Driscoll, her nephews Rick Haffner and John Granger, many great-nieces and nephews, and her brother-in-law Bill Granger.
Memorial donations may be made to the United Methodist Retirement Communities Foundation, https://umrcfoundation.umrcph.com.
Condolences may be sent to Martha’s son and/or daughter:
David Gregg
1200 W Sherwin Ave
Apt 3K
Chicago, IL 60626
Sara Barnes
1542 Newport Creek Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Last Updated on October 31, 2023