Willieann (Green) Heard was born in Columbus, Georgia to Vera Mae Small and Willie Green on October 8, 1929. She was the first of three children born to the Greens. The Greens migrated to Detroit, Michigan when Willieann was 7 years old. They settled in a neighborhood near Detroit’s historic Black Bottom area with several other family members. Jobs were scarce so they all lived together in a two-story flat for several years. Willieann grew up in a deep, rooted Christian home and spent most of her childhood attending Baptist churches with her family. As a child she loved singing and became a member of the children’s choir. She attended Sidney D. Miller High School. She was an exceptionally bright student and graduated with honors. She married Ores Heard in February of 1948. There were 6 children born from this union. As a new mother, Ann sought to gift her children with rich educational opportunities through the Archdiocese of Detroit school system. As she made the decision to enroll her children in a Catholic school, she also decided to recommit her life to Christianity by becoming baptized into the Roman Catholic faith. Ann would go on to become an active member of Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church on 8 Mile Road in Detroit. Willieann and Ores found their “forever home” on Washburn in the city of Detroit. That home was filled with laughter, adventures, and unconditional love. A home that would welcome 4 generations of Heards to celebrate any and all occasions that would bring the family together. Ores and Willieann would be united in marriage for over 66 years. Willieann rarely missed Sunday mass from the 1950s through 2020. Music was her passion and she poured a sweet soprano voice out into the pews at Presentation-Our Lady of Victory (POLOV) every Sunday. Once her daughters became older, she, and the two of them, Joeann and Pamela, would join multiple city choirs to sing their praises to the Lord throughout the years. Beyond praising the Lord and devotion to her family, Willieann found a great deal of joy in taking on new indoor and outdoor creative hobbies. On any given week she would alternate from tending to her beautiful rainbow-colored floral garden to coming inside to fill the house with classical notes from the piano to resuming work on a new household remodeling project. No project was too big! She would often say, “Don’t throw that away. I can make something out of that!” Where many might see blank, unsalvageable materials, she saw a purposeful and functional new use for these neglected parts. Willieann’s ability to center us all back to the beauty and joy in our surroundings was something even complete strangers admired about her. Willieann, Ann, Ma, Mama, Judy, among the many terms of endearment that we knew her by, was an incredibly compassionate, generous, strong, and creative woman. Willieann, with her vibrant smile, was loved by all who encountered her, and she will be deeply missed. Willieann is preceded in death by her husband, Ores, her son, Ores Jr., her daughter, Joeann, her parents Vera and Willie, brothers Robert and Samuel. She is survived by her children: Constance Walker-Holland (Tony), Michael Heard (Rolanda), and Patrick Heard; grandchildren: Wesley Walker, Taniya Walker, Steven Walker, Brandon Heard, Lauren Heard and Bryan Heard along with a host of cousins, nieces and nephews, and great-grandchildren.