Martha Merchant, 95

Martha M. (Forreider) Merchant, 95, of Kalamazoo, died Thursday evening, Dec. 24, 2015. Martha was born Aug. 26, 1920 in Sidney, Ohio a daughter of J. Isaac and Lulu (Dodson) Jones. She had been a lifelong Schoolcraft area resident and attended Sunnyside United Methodist Church. Martha was preceded in death by her parents; her first husband, Eugene Forreider in August of 1973; her second husband, Arnold D. Merchant on March 31, 2004; a daughter, Joyce in 1980; three sisters, Ina, Christine and Wilma; and a grandson, Kyle Forreider. She is survived by three children, Gerald (Janet) Forreider of Longmont, Colo., Robert “Bob” Forreider of Plymouth and Margene (Jeff) Baker of Three Rivers; nine adoring grandchildren; several great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews; and a special friend, Dee. Services will be held 11 o’clock Saturday, Jan. 2 from the Langeland Family Funeral Homes, Memorial Chapel, 622 S. Burdick St. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the chapel. Interment will be in Moorepark Cemetery. Memorials may be directed to the Heritage Community or the charity of your choice. Please visit Martha’s personalized webpage for directions, online guestbook or to leave a condolence. www.langelands.com.