Margaret Rorke – A Poem, A Recipe and An Invitation
- Nov 16, 2025
- 6 min read
"Au Gratin"
Au Gratin I don't think I'm underhanded
Since the day when I was wed,
It is just my Bill was landed
With fudge cake and gingerbread.
I was lucky-never guessing
Of all bait I'd chosen these
Which he'd eat without the blessing
Of a covering of cheese.
Now I've taken to disguising
Lots of vegetables and meat
In attempts quite enterprising
To entice his Nibs to eat.
When with allergies he's fencing
'Gainst some food, (He'll even sneeze)
That's the clue for my commencing
To just cover it with cheese.
I suppose my wifely sisters all have methods of their own.
Some use catsup on their misters.
Some make sauces—theirs alone.
But I have this one suggestion
If your hubby's hard to please.
Let me put it as a question: Have you covered it with cheese?
-Margaret Rorke
MARGARET RORKE
Margaret Rorke, the only child of Robert James Curry (a leading Michigan attorney) and Anna Ludolph Curry (an immigrant from Germany), was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan on November 1, 1915. As she was growing up in Saginaw, Michigan, she was an admirer of the poetry of Edgar Guest, a popular writer of verse for the Detroit Free Press. She also felt privileged to have heard the poet Edwin Markham read his works, when he visited Saginaw High School. She graduated from Saginaw High in 1934 and was president of her senior class –-- the first woman class president at SHS.
In 1938, she received her B.A. from the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts at the University of Michigan, having been the president of Alpha Chi Omega during her senior year and a member of the honor societies of Alpha Lambda Delta, Wyvern, and Mortarboard. In the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, she took a course in creative writing from Professor Proctor, who encouraged her to write poetry. The following year, she was Assistant Social Director of Women at the University of Michigan, and in 1942, she graduated from the University of Michigan’s Law School. She was one of only five women to graduate in the senior class of 1942. Margaret returned to Saginaw and joined her father to form the law firm of Curry & Curry. She practiced law with her father for five years. In 1959, she was admitted to practice law before the United States Supreme Court on the motion of Wilber M. Brucker, then Secretary of the Army. She was the first woman to be admitted to the Saginaw County Bar in the twentieth century. From 1959 to 1976, she represented members of the Credit Bureau of Saginaw in legal actions.
On June 29, 1946, she married William Craig Rorke (1913-1977), who had just returned from service in the Pacific Theater during World War II, where he had been the Communications Officer on the U.S.S. Libra in eight major invasions. William (“Bill”) was the manager of the Credit Bureau of Saginaw from 1940 to 1942 and from 1946 until his death in 1977. They had two children –-- Robert Craig (“Bob”) Rorke (b. 1947), who became a manager of various businesses in Saginaw and in Ann Arbor, and Margaret Ann (“Peggy”) Rorke (b. 1949), who became a professor of music history at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.
In February of 1950, with the encouragement of her husband and due to the interest of Otto Pressprich, then editor of The Saginaw News, Margaret commenced twenty-two years of writing poetry regularly for the editorial pages of The Saginaw News (daily, for the first 1,000 poems). In all, she published 2,824 poems in The Saginaw News. 1975 was the beginning of sixteen years of writing some-400 poems for the column of Judd Arnett in the Detroit Free Press. Her poems were published weekly in the Saginaw Township Times for the year of 1988. Her poetry has appeared as well in many periodicals and anthologies, including The Reader’s Digest, Guideposts, Better Homes and Gardens, Ideals, The P.E.O. Record, and The Sample Case. At her death in the year 2000, 3,213 different poems by Margaret Rorke had been published.
Some of these poems were gathered by the poet into three sizable books: My Ego Trip (1976), An Old Cracked Cup (1980), and Christmas Could-Be Tales (And Other Verses) (1984). The dust covers of My Ego Trip and An Old Cracked Cup define their contents: My Ego Trip presents “a carnival of family moments --- the light moments and the inspirational ones.” “An Old Cracked Cup mixes lighthearted verse and deeper reflective poetry, ingredients to help fill the cracks which come into each life.” The twenty-two Christmas Could-Be Tales were written for the pleasure of children during the Christmas season. As Mrs. Rorke said in one of her talks: “They were my version of legends and stories that, taken together, cover just about every phase of Christmas. No one can deny the truth of them … because they just COULD BE true.” The Other Verses include poems for every annual holiday and for the seasons. All proceeds from these three books were contributed to religious, cultural, and charitable organizations in Saginaw.
Margaret Rorke had many honors, including the John J. Hensel Award of the Michigan State Bar Association (1987) for being an “attorney who has made an outstanding contribution to the arts or literature,” Ideals’ Best-Loved Poet (1981); Zonta Club’s Woman of the Year (1989-90); an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters from Saginaw Valley State University (1985); and the Edward McArdle Award for Exceptional Service to the Legal Profession and Significant Community Contributions (2000). Posthumously, she was inducted into the Saginaw Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2020, the digital edition of her 4,000 published poems, as well as her three books of poetry, were added to the Library of Congress’s collection of American poetry.
She served two terms as president of the Saginaw Zonta Club, and she belonged to the First Congregational Church, the P.E.O. Sisterhood, the Women’s National Farm and Garden Association, the University of Michigan Alumnae Association, the Saginaw Culture Club, The Saginaw County Lawyers’ Auxiliary, The Saginaw County Bar Association, and the Michigan State Bar Association. She contributed her poetic and speaking talents as well to entertain countless groups and to promote causes/organizations, such as the Mothers’ March on Polio and the Saginaw Civic Symphony.
She passed away suddenly on April 26, 2000, at Glacier Hills Senior Living Community in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
(Biography written by Bob and Peggy Rorke, son and daughter of Margaret Rorke.)
The Recipe – Au Gratin Potatoes
Although not an actual recipe from Margaret Rorke, this version of Au Gratin Potatoes is a CTK staff favorite. (It is a recipe we would never show to our doctor.)
It is adapted from https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/potatoes-au-gratin.html
Ingredients:
Butter to grease baking dish
Peeled garlic cloves
2½ pounds Russet potatoes (3 to 4), peeled and sliced very thin
1½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
dash+ of nutmeg
1+ cup cheese – gruyere mixed parmigiano-reggiano (you will be happier if you grate your own cheese.)
2¼ cups heavy cream (This recipe requires heavy cream and will not actually work with substitutions.)
This is recipe that CTK often makes without measuring
Method :
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Butter oven proof baking dish - roughly 2 qt baking dish. After buttering, rub side and bottom of dish with peeled garlic cloves.
Peel potatoes and slice as thinly and uniformly as possible. A mandoline – used with care – is a great tool.
Lightly salt and pepper potatoes – make certain you toss to evenly coat.
Grate cheese.
Pour heavy cream into a measuring cup and add a dash of nutmeg – maybe two dashes. On occasion, even three.
Assemble the gratin. On the bottom of baking dish arrange potato slices with edges overlapping, sprinkle a quarter of cheese over potatoes and then pour one quarter of the cream over potatoes.
Repeat, ending with a heavier layer of cheese on top. We add a little more cheese after pouring over the final portion of cream.
This is directly from the recipe - Bake the gratin for 60 to 75 minutes [we always bake it a little longer], until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife and golden brown on top. Don’t cover the dish with foil — you want that beautiful color to develop. The top should be nicely golden by the time it’s done, but if you’d like a little extra browning, pop it under the broiler for a minute or two (just keep a close eye on it, so it doesn’t burn). Sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves, if you like, and serve warm.
Place this baking dish on a foil-lined cookie pan. Potatoes au gratin frequently run over the side of the baking dish.
CTK Notes:
We suggest experimenting with the ratio of gruyere and Parmesan. We normally use a higher percentage of gruyere and reserve the majority of the Parmesan for the top layer.
Plan on cooking this at 50% longer than the time given.
An invitation to continue your exploration of Margaret Rorke’s work:
The second Art of Performance program Nov. 29, 2025, 1:00 p.m., at First Congregational Church 403. S. Jefferson Avenue, Saginaw, MI, 48607, will feature organist, Dr. Thomas Heidenreich, Director of Music Ministries at First and Second Presbyterian Churches, Saginaw. His program will include the world premiere of "Three Christmas Poems" by the late Saginaw poet, Margaret Rorke, and composed by Collin Whitfield. Open to the public. Free-will offering. Contact 989.754.6565 for further information.