1986
Bio:
Emmet and Frances Tracy have been and continue to be a source of inspiration for countless Catholic, civic and education organizations in the Detroit Community. They met at Holy Redeemer Church and School on Detroit’s west side when Frances was a senior. They married and in the following years raised a family of four children, began a company and actively engaged in opportunities for the betterment of the community.
Mr. Tracy organized the Alma Products Company in Alma, Michigan in 1943. It originally began as the Tracy Detroit Manufacturing Company, but was quickly changed to the Alma Piston Company when it moved its location to Alma due to the lack of factory rental space in Detroit during wartime. Mr. Tracy went on to guide the success of the company and monitor its growth and is still active in its operation. He was successful in instilling a Christian spirit and humane value system in the business environment. His genuine concern for the welfare of those in his employ was instrumental in the success of the company itself. Such ideals and concern carry over into the Tracys’ commitment to the organizations they have served and supported.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Tracy have been active in the Grosse Pointe Academy, Bon Secours Hospital – he as a trustee -, the P.I.M.E Missionaries and St. Paul’s on the Lake. Mr. Tracy has also been a benefactor of the Gratiot Community Hospital and is an ardent supporter of Alma College. He is past chairman of the Archdiocesan Fund Drive and is a member of the Cardinal Club. Both are dedicated to preserving high quality education and have been involved with Marygrove College, Mercy College of Detroit and Northwood Institute.
Mrs. Tracy has focused her efforts on those organizations that directly affect the quality of life for the individuals they assist. Particularly interested in your people, she has contributed her time and energy to the Sarah Fisher Home for Children, Marillac Hall and Louise Program, Catholic Youth Organization, the Dom Bosco Home for Boys, the Parent’s Association of Sacred Heart Convent in Grosse Pointe, Friends of Stapleton Center, Milk Fund Charities and Children’s Hospital. She has also been vice president of the Board of the Muscular Dystrophy Association and vice president of the League of Catholic Women.
Other charitable and civic interests of the Tracys’ include Christ Child Society, Detroit Historical Society, The Christophers, and Friends of the Monastery of the Blessed Sacrament. Mrs. Tracy’s interests also include her work with the Right to Life Organization, the Fontbonne Auxiliary of St. John Hospital and Morality in Media in Michigan and New York. She has received the P.I.M.E. Missionaries Knights of Charity Award and was honored for her work with Northwood Institute when they presented her with the Distinguished Woman Award in 1971.
The Tracys are native Detroiters and long-time residents of Grosse Pointe Farms. Amidst their many commitments they still find time to enjoy their summer home in Harbor Point and for Mrs. Tracy to act as an understudy at Hilberry Theater of Wayne State University.
Award was presented at the Works of Mercy Dinner September 11, 1986 by Maureen A. Fay, O.P., President, Mercy College of Detroit and Thomas V. Angott, Chairman of the MCD Board of Trustees and President of Pure Milk Co.