Marvy Finger
HAR extends condolences to family, friends and colleagues of real estate tycoon Marvy Finger, who died on October 22 at the age of 86. Marvy leaves a legacy as a premiere developer of apartment homes and as a philanthropist. He was passionate in his pursuit of perfection in business and generous to the city of Houston where he was born and pursued his life’s work.
Marvy was the last of the three legendary Finger brothers, raised by his family in their Riverside Terrace neighborhood. He attended San Jacinto High School. In 1957, he graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Civil Engineering and a minor in Business Administration.
Marvy began his extraordinary career with a humble beginning. He went to work as an assistant to a small homebuilder who built only a dozen starter homes per year. When the builder became ill, Marvy took over the business and continued for a few years as a successful builder of beginner homes. These early years gave Marvy his first taste of the importance of mastering all of the details of property development, and he often related the story of finding out that the title to the land under his first project was owned by others. An investor offered a solution to the lack of title that included Marvy’s agreement to finish an apartment project to help out the investor in return. The rest is history.
Marvy was modest and private about his success in business and was not one to sing his own praises– but others certainly did. Over the years he has been given many awards. The industry media has labeled him as a “tycoon,” a “true icon,” a “legend” and a “visionary.” Marvy’s own selection of a title for himself was much humbler, “I want to be the best housekeeper in the U.S.”
Marvy lived and breathed the apartment business and worked 24/7. He was extremely proud of the talented people that worked for him and gratefully recognized their contributions to the Company’s long line of successes. Over six decades of work, he mentored and advised countless young managers and developers, imparting his life-long motto of CFIMITYM. He also advised and befriended men and women from all walks of life, and would take anyone’s call if he wasn’t busy.
Over his career, Marvy built 93 apartment projects in eight states with almost 30,000 units. His most ambitious project was One Park Place, the landmark tower in downtown Houston across from Discovery Green. The property has been hailed as the catalyst for Houston’s boom in downtown living developments and stands as a tribute to his vision and courage as a developer.
Marvy was an avid and accomplished private pilot. He was an athlete and an outdoorsman who enjoyed a wide variety of activities and sports including skiing, bird-hunting and fly-fishing. He loved to cook and garden and go boating in Galveston Bay. He loved lunches with his many friends and business associates. And as serious as he was in business, he was often funny and had a quick, dry wit.
Marvy was devoted to learning, studying and reading and was never without a biography or history book underway. He adored classical music. He loved the Houston Symphony and DaCamera of Houston. He supported medicine, especially in his role on the Foundation Board of Methodist Hospital. He enjoyed the theater, both at Stages and at The Alley. He loved walking through Hermann and Memorial Parks and riding his bike through Buffalo Bayou Park and its connecting trails. But his greatest love was in supporting education, be it the Bauer College at UH, Houston Christian University, University of Arizona or Briarwood School. He also created, along with his wife Elaine, The Marvy Finger Family Foundation Scholarship program. This program was based on his belief that a productive work life should be available to all. He and his wife developed and managed this program to help low-income Houston ISD high-school graduates pursue a career through certification or a degree, mentoring them along the way. Marvy characterized this scholarship program as the greatest and most satisfying accomplishment of his life, often getting emotional when he talked about it.
Marvy was predeceased by his parents Hyman Edward Finger and Bessie Kaplan Finger, his brothers Jerry Elliott Finger and Ronald Jack Finger, and his sister-in-law Nanette Breitenbach Finger. He is survived by his loving wife Elaine Willits Finger, his daughter Jill Jewett and husband Dunham, his son Edward Alan Finger, and his step-son Greg Newton, wife Sallie, and their children Reese and Blake. He is also survived by his grandchildren Ryan Dunham Jewett and wife Brittany Hastings Jewett, Sarah Alison Jewett and fiancé Timothy Sherman Burke, William Kimpton Jewett, and his great-grandson Cary William Jewett. In addition, he is also survived by his nephews Richard, Walter, Jonathan, and Scott Finger and his niece Jan Finger Geniesse.
Memorial services were held on October 26 at Congregation Beth Israel in Houston. You may read Marvy’s full obituary online at https://tinyurl.com/422ndb38.
MARILYN MICHELE MAXWELL
HAR is mourning the loss of one of its own – a staffer who touched the lives of thousands of HAR members. Marilyn Michele Maxwell, 50, died on October 10, 2022, following a courageous 2.5-year battle with cervical cancer.
Marilyn was born on September 5, 1972. For more than 15 years, she was a Training and Member Outreach Specialist working in HAR’s Professional Development (Education) department. During that time, Marilyn taught a wide variety of classes to new and veteran agents and brokers. She loved her job, and members loved her, as seen by the thousands of comments and condolences that poured in on social media when HAR announced her passing. Many noted Marilyn’s infectious smile, kind demeanor and her unique and edgy sense of humor. Those messages continued coming in steadily for more than a week.
About Marilyn, her longtime companion, Kip Martin, wrote: “She was my sweetheart of 10+ years, and mother to Christopher, 27. She raised Christopher on her own as a single mother, and ever since he developed Autism at a very early age, spared no trouble or expense in getting him into the best therapies and special-needs schools she possibly could. She and Christopher were thrilled to purchase and move into their very own townhome in the Houston area about 13 years ago. Her happy place was the beach, or anywhere else that she could be together with her two special guys.”
Marilyn lost both of her parents to cancer in recent years. Father, James Michael “Mike” Maxwell, in August of 2011, and mother, Kay Jones Maxwell, in March of 2015.
Kip added, “Marilyn is survived by me; her son, Christopher; and her brother, Cliff Maxwell and wife Melissa; and their sons: Lucas and Nicolas, who loved their Aunt Marilyn very much. For those of you who know Christopher, please be comforted, as I am, by the fact that he has gained a father and sisters that he never had, and we have gained a son and brother that we never had.”
A Celebration of Life was held on October 21 at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston. Funeral services were held on October 22 at Callaway-Jones Funeral Center in Bryan, Texas.
