Martha Hirsch 1935 - 2024

We are announcing the passing of our beloved mother, teacher, mom and friend, Martha Hirsch.

Martha was born June 4, 1935, in Gary, Indiana, to Herschel and Dorothy Davis. She attended Cornell University and the University of Kansas, achieving a master’s degree from the latter. She had a long career as a registered dietitian working mostly in hospitals. In her personal life, she married  James Hirsch (Jim), in 1961, later having two sons in 1968 and 1971. In 1981, the Hirsch family moved to Oregon, where Martha got a job at Meridian Park Hospital in Tualatin, Oregon. She retired from the hospital shortly after the passing of her husband Jim in 2000. She then worked at Portland Community College, teaching nutrition to nursing students until she retired at the age of 82.

She maintained an active career of helping people while also being a supportive and loving mother to her two sons and support to her husband. She was the primary caretaker to her grandson from the age of four to 11. She was a source of love while her husband battled cancer, and a source of support as those around her grieved his loss.

Of the many roles she had as a dietitian, an area she enjoyed the most was diabetes education. She worked with diabetes patients and with the American Diabetes Association (ADA). She enjoyed participating in fundraising during the ADA’s annual Gala events, which she loved to attend with Jim. She was a long-time supporter and member of P.E.O., an organization that supports educational opportunities for girls and young women.

Martha was preceded in death by her husband, Jim, who passed from cancer on September 11, 2000. She is survived by her sons, Erich and Fritz Hirsch, and their families.

A service will be held at  2 p.m., Saturday, June 22, 2024, at McMinnville Cooperative Ministries in McMinnville, OR 97128.

To leave online condolences, please visit www.macyandson.com