Toni Martin

Toni B. Martin, age 71, passed away peacefully on March 9th, 2025. She was born August 19th, 1953, to the late Lewis and Muirel Barachkov. She was a graduate of Fitzgerald High School in 1971. This is where she met and later married David Martin. On August 26th, 1979, Toni and David welcomed a daughter, Natalie into the world. Toni was a hard worker and talented chef; she spent the majority of her younger years working in the food industry. She was a valued worker on the deli team at Hollywood Market. At VG’s Market, Toni prepped, served, and catered food, and she even served as a chef for Beaumont Hospital. Toni was dependable, helpful, genuine and someone people knew they could always count on. Incredibly witty with a great sense of humor, she was known to make people laugh. She was truly one of a kind; Toni spoke from her heart and lived her life true to herself. Though Toni was beyond strong with a tough exterior, she also had a heart of gold, the type that gives and expects nothing in return. Despite fighting many ailments and health conditions, she never gave up and fought to the very last breath. Toni is survived by her husband David; daughter Natalie; son-in-law Ryan; granddaughter Ava; brothers Danny (late Pat) and Peter (Karin); sisters Kim, Mitzi (Fred), Lesli, and Doreen; brothers-in-law Bill and John (Janice); sister-in-law Kathy (Rod) and many beautiful nieces, nephews, cousins, friends, and fur babies (Nala & Hazel). Toni loved animals (her dog, her birds, her squirrels), listening to her music, singing, cooking, baking, and shopping. During Christmas, her family looked forward to amazing Russian Teacake cookies and her fantastic fudge. Her greatest joys and accomplishments in life were the love of her husband, and the gift of being both a mom and grandma. Toni was the best grandma a kid could ask for and her “Ava” was the apple of her eye and held the key to her heart. Toni was a member of The Lupus Foundation of America. In lieu of flowers, donations to this organization would be appreciated. A memorial to honor Toni’s life will be at Mandziuk & Son Funeral Directors of Sterling Heights on March 22, 2025, from 12-4 pm.

Toni Martin

August 19, 1953 - March 9, 2025