(WWJ) -- The matriarch of the family behind the Michigan-based grocery chain Meijer has passed away this weekend.
Lena Meijer died Saturday at the age of 102.
She was the wife of Frederick Meijer, the son of the store's founder, Hendrik Meijer.
Her family said she was born in Lakeview, Michigan in 1919 and moved to the city of Greenville -- northeast of Grand Rapids -- in 1940 where she worked in the original Meijer supermarket as a cashier.
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She met her husband while employed there and they married in 1946. They moved to Grand Rapids in 1946 where she continued to work in the family business until 1952 when her first son was born.
According to her obituary, Lena "cherished" memories of camel rides and hot-air balloon flights, golf tournaments and cycling trips. She also developed a "special fondness" for penguins, collecting penguin-related items in all shapes and sizes.
Lena's obituary can be viewed here.
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