Emily Mary was the eighth of twelve children (6 daughters and six sons) of Valentine George Schaaf (1868-1940) and Caroline Elizabeth (Carrie) Jordan Schaaf (1875-1967). She grew up on a farmstead in Murdock MN and later lived in Michigan and California.

Emily's birth, according to her mother's memoir, was eventful. The doctor had been called but Emily did not wait for him to arrive; a neighbor, Mrs. Hanrahan from Murdock, assisted Carrie.

At age 18, Emily was living in Minneapolis and working as a bookkeeper; her mother lived with her at 2748 Cedar Avenue (according to the city directory of 1926). On 14 June 1928, she formed a union with Leslie (Lester) Norhald Hodgdon, and they were formally married on 20 Oct. 1934 in Mount Clemens, Macomb County, MI. The 1930 census records the couple with their newborn son Roger (their only child, born on 30 March that year) living in Detroit, where Lester works as a welder in an auto factory. By the time of the 1940 census, Lester is welding furnaces and Emily is a drill press operator at a metal parts shop in Detroit. By 1945, they were in Royal Oak, Ferndale County, MI, where they had begun, before the war, to build their own small home (ca. 24'x24' with a small utility porch on the back). Emily was a meticulous housekeeper and Lester made most of the furniture for the house. They lived on George Street in Hazel Park, barely out of Detroit city limits.

Emily, like many others in her family, died of cancer in 1986; she had moved to California to be closer to her son Roger; her husband had predeceased her by more than two decades. She was a lively, free-spirited girl and woman, much loved by her family.

This death notice was published for Emily:
"Emily M., passed away in Mission Vielo, CA. Jan. 24. Born in Murdock, MN., lived for a period in Garrison, MN. Survived by 1 son, Roger Hodgdon; 4 sisters, Caroline Hammond, Marie Moim, Myrtle Huggins, Valentina Schwenk; 2 brothers, Joseph & Charles Schaaf; also 3 grandchildren & 2 great-grandchildren. Service Tues. 10 a.m. at O'Conner Laguna Hills Mortuary, 25301 Alicia Parkway, Laguna Hills, CA 92653. In lieu of flowers, donations to American Cancer Society interment following at El Toro Cemetery."

publ. in the Star Tribune: 25 Jan 1986.