Gregory Diffendal, age 73, of Leonidas, passed away at his home on Thursday, March 20, 2025 after his hard-fought battle with cancer. He was born on December 26, 1951 in Niles, the son of Francis and Helen (Imm) Diffendal. On June 18, 1977 Greg married the love of his life, Debra MacDonald, at the Leonidas Methodist Church. Greg was a …

Fred Carl Poddig Jr., age 81, of Three Rivers, passed away Wednesday, March 19, 2025 at his home. He was born July 29, 1943 in Grand Rapids, the son of Carl and Cecilia (Galdis) Poddig, and graduated from Portage Central High School. Fred worked at the A&P Store, sold real estate, then was a salesman for Schwan’s Home Delivery, before …

A Generation That Will Never Come Back It’s funny how fast life goes! I was born in 1944 and when I was growing up, hearing stories of people who were born in the 20s and 30s seemed so foreign and old to me. Now, when younger people hear that I was born in the 40s, I am considered old. The …

Margaret M. Hart, age 88, of Sturgis, passed away early Saturday morning, March 22, 2025, at Thurston Woods Village in Sturgis. She was born August 25, 1936, in Vicksburg, daughter of the late Maurice M. and Lucille (Phelps) Masten. Marge resided in Sturgis since 1951. On September 1, 1954, she married Daniel Franklin Hart in Vicksburg. He preceded her in …

David Noble Pittman, born on October 16, 1963, passed away on Friday, March 21, 2025 at the age of 61, after a courageous battle with kidney disease. He was the beloved husband of Connie Pittman (Riddinger), with whom he shared 32 wonderful years of marriage. David was preceded in death by his cherished parents, Noble and Mary Pittman (Kline), who …

Boyd Blashfield, always known to his friends as “Mickey,” passed away unexpectedly at his home in Colon on Wednesday, March 19, 2025. He was 61 years old. Born the oldest of four children to Paul & Mary (Heselschwerdt) Blashfield in Homer, MI October 27, 1963 (a birthday shared with his father Paul, separated by 20 years). He graduated from Homer …

Alesha Nicole “Nikki Fincher” Buttitta, loving wife, mother, daughter and friend, age 34, of Three Rivers, passed away unexpectedly on March 11, 2025. She was born July 7, 1990 in Atlanta, GA, the daughter of Robert and Laurie (Howard) Fincher, and graduated from Three Rivers High School with the Class of 2008. Alesha worked at Frankie’s, American Axle, Blue Gate …

Rachel L. Wilbourn, age 46, passed away on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, after a courageous and hard-fought 10-year battle with breast cancer. Rachel was born in Sturgis on November 9, 1978. She graduated from Burr Oak High School in 1997 where she was also prom queen. Rachel earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from Western Michigan University. …

Jo Anne Ackerman of Vicksburg, passed away on Monday, March 17, 2025, at the age of 67. Jo Anne was born on December 20, 1957 in Three Rivers. She was the daughter of Harley and Lilly (Watkins) Hall. She enjoyed competing with her sister on video games, drawing art, and crocheting. She will be remembered as having an independent spirit, …

Arthur Gardner Rice died peacefully on Saturday, March 15, 2025 in Lakeland, Florida at the age of 93. He was born on May 28, 1931 in Centreville to George and Faith (Gardner) Rice. He graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Agriculture. He was a lifelong resident of St. Joseph County.  He married Doris Patricia VanRiper (Pat), in …