Carol Messner, 70

Carol Jeannine Messner, age 70, of Sturgis, passed away Saturday afternoon October 2, 2021 at her home.
She was born March 1, 1951 in Kalamazoo, the daughter of the late Roy Garnaat and Jeannine (Hunt, Garnaat) Taylor.
Carol resided in Sturgis since 1972 coming from Portage, where she was a graduate of Portage Central High School with the class of 1969.
On January 8, 1973 she married Fred Messner in Centreville.
Carol was a licensed beautician and had owned and operated the Cutting Corner in Sturgis for over 15 years. She had also worked at Hair-N-Things and We Got Style, both in Sturgis. Prior to becoming a beautician she had been employed by Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo and Sturgis Hospital.
Carol enjoyed rock painting and truly loved her work and her many clients. She had a passion for music and loved time spent with Fred especially when they were attending musical concerts.
Carol was happiest when she was able to give to others. One of her goals when she beat cancer, was to give more of her time to charitable organizations. Carol’s courage to fight this battle came from her relationship with God that started at a young age and grew stronger as she has seen what God can do, feel the presence of God and seeing God’s handiwork in nature….in true Carol style, she wanted to offer advice to help promote self-care in all of us because she admittedly would say she didn’t do enough of that! She wanted to relay this to you all: to know God, to make sure to enjoy nature and to remember to exfoliate! We will miss her beautiful smile, her laugh, her sense of humor, her big heart, her encouragement and her spirit for justice and peace! Truly, Carol was one special woman and we will miss her and her zest for life.
Carol is survived by her husband: Fred; two sons: Ryan Messner of Portage and Sean Messner of Sturgis; two sisters: Susan (Steven) Wilson of Portage and Lisa (Larry) Schlabach of Centreville; one brother: David (Brenda Troyer) Garnaat of Portage; four nieces and five nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents and sister-in-law: Joyce Garnaat.
In accordance with her wishes cremation has taken place. A gathering of family and friends to celebrate and honor the life of Carol Jeannine Messner will be held from 1:00 to 3:00 P.M. Saturday, October 16th at DaVinci’s Italian Restaurant, 1616 E. Chicago Road in Sturgis.
The Hackman Family Funeral Homes of Sturgis is entrusted with the arrangements.
The family suggests in lieu of flowers memorial donation be directed to the charity of one’s own choice.
The obituary is also at www.hackmanfamilyfuneralhomes.com where we encourage relatives and friends to share memories and leave condolences for the family.