District Library Board secretary Alma Hughes-Grubbs dies Jan. 7

(June 3, 1956 – January 7, 2026)
Alma Jean Hughes-Grubbs, an elected member of the Belleville Area District Library Board, died Jan. 7 after a battle with cancer.
Grubbs, 69, of Van Buren Township was re-elected to her third term on the board in 2024 and had been serving as the board’s secretary.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 23, at Triumph Church, 2760 E. Grand Blvd. Detroit, 48211. A Family Hour is scheduled from 10:30 a.m. until the time of service.
Grubbs had been a polygraph examiner and retired as sergeant from the Detroit Police Department. In 2006, after retiring, she started her own polygraph service.
Grubbs earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Wayne State University and a master of science in administration and human resources from Central Michigan University.
She belonged to the Retired Detroit Police and Fire Fighters Association, American Polygraph Association, and Triumph Church. When she had free time, she liked to golf.
She had lived in Van Buren Township for more than 20 years and said she saw the need for a new library and worked to get the millage passed. She called the library “the jewel of our community.”