Geneva Tramaine (Hinton) Burton

Geneva Tramaine Hinton-Burton was born on January 3, 1983 to Marvin Hinton and Betty Sue Hill in Elgin, IL.  She is the third of four children. Geneva graduated from Benton Harbor High School in 2001, attended Lake Michigan College and went to culinary school in Chicago, IL.  She was in the Tiger Marching Band where she played the coronet. She was affectionately known to family and friends as “Genny”, and Tee-tee and Dee-dee by her nieces and nephews.  Genny worked for a number of years at Lakeland Hospital, as an ICU CNA; almost a decade at Wedgwood Christian Services; and ended her career as an office coordinator with Sparkle & Shine, LLC.

Genny accepted the Lord in her life at an early age at New Paradise Missionary Baptist under the leadership of Pastor Willie T. Burton.  At New Paradise, Genny sang in the choir (Voices of Paradise and the Allegros) from the time she was 4 years. She also regularly attended Sunday School and Junior Mission.

Genny enjoyed a life of love and laughter with her family and friends.  She was known for her humor and her infectious laugh, and would often hold up her Baptist finger when she got too tickled to stay in church.  While she was not even born when our family UNO tournaments started, she became the official coordinator of our UNO tournaments and has a collection of decks, even the original deck from over 20 years ago.  Genny also collected fancy dishware that she would cook amazing spreads for her family with.  She loved all things fancy, creative, and shimmery. Her style would be on display in the multiple hairstyles she wore, how she would “beat” her face (put on make-up); and her whole creative flow that included fashion, decor, crocheting, video games (for hours) and fishing.  She was meticulous!  Genny LOVED music…all kinds of music, but especially gospel music.  She would regularly share music with all of her family, and was known for breaking out in an old hymn or some 70’s R&B song.  Everyone who knew Genny, knew that she did not get in a hurry for anything. It was a family joke to tell her an earlier time for family functions so she would be on time.  Genny was the nurturer of the family, always checking on people and serving those she loved.

Family was everything to Genny. As a child, she loved spending summers with her dad (Marvin) and Annette, her brother (Marvin), and her sister (Janiqua) in Illinois.  Although Genny was not the baby of the family, she was really Betty’s baby and spent as much time with her as she could shopping, cooking, doing arts and crafts, or just laying in the bed watching movies.  Genny loved being a wife to her husband, Greg, and being a mother to “Junie” (Gregory, Jr.). Darneatta was not only her little sister, but they were best friends and talked on the phone every day, went to the beach together, and encouraged each other.  She affectionately called her big brother (Tony) “Buddy”, Shatawn “brother-in-law”, and her big sister (Nadia) “Sis”, and would check on them regularly.  She shared her dreams and creative plans with her brother and sisters, and she had lots of them.  Genny loved her nieces and nephews as her own children and was their safe place and creative outlet. As professional as she was, Genny was a kid at heart and it came through in how she engaged everyone in the family.

Genny leaves to deeply cherish her fond memory an enormous number of family and friends that include her loving husband, Greg Burton, Sr of Kentwood, MI; her mother, Betty Sue Hill of Kentwood, MI; her dad Marvin (Madelyn) of Rockford, IL; her stepchildren, Gregory Burton, Jr. of Indianapolis, IN; KeShon Hoggard of Indianapolis, IN; Diavian King of Houston, TX; and Amira Wilson of Detroit, MI; her brother Tony (Shadene) Marshall of Grand Rapids and her sister Nadia (Shatawn) Brigham of the Grand Rapids area; her brother Marvin Wallace of Memphis, TN; her sister Darneatta Hinton of Houston, TX; her sister Janiqua of Rockford, IL; her nephew Marvin Jones of Kentwood, MI; her niece Imani (Christopher) Hosey of Kentwood, MI; her niece Laila Brigham of Kentwood, MI; her nephews Marvel Hinton and Quentavius Hinton, and a niece, Mia Harris; a great-nephew Isaiah Hosey; and a host of aunties, uncles, and cousins. Genny is incredibly loved and will truly be missed until we see her again.

Genny is being greeted at Heaven’s gates by maternal grandparents: Dorothy Marshall and LeVander Marshall; her paternal grandparents, Eugene & Geneva Hinton; Uncles: Thomas Hinton, Elmer Hinton, Jerry Marshall; and Stepfather Brian Hill.

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