JaNean Elaine Houck, age 88, of LaGrange, passed away Wednesday morning June 3, 2020 at Miller’s Merry Manor Nursing Home in LaGrange. She was born September 7, 1931 in Sturgis, daughter of the late Allison Neil and Beulah Ann (Roe) Mizner. JaNean resided in the Sturgis and LaGrange County area most of her life and was a graduate of LaGrange …

Susan M. Webb, age 98, of Sturgis, passed away Thursday morning June 4, 2020 at her home. She was born December 10, 1921 in Strasburg, Missouri daughter of the late Hans Ferdinand and Eva (Owen) Christensen. Mrs. Webb resided most of her life in Sturgis and was a graduate of Sturgis High School with the class or 1939. On January …

Eugene A. “Pete” Lehman, age 81, of Sturgis, passed away Thursday, June 4, 2020 at his home. He was born Sept. 4, 1938 in Akron, OH a son to the late Carter and Welcome (Foster) Lehman. As a young child the family moved from Rogers, OH to White Pigeon, where Eugene attended White Pigeon High School. On June 15, 1957 …

Sharon Kay Longacre, age 81, of Middlebury, and formerly of Burr Oak, passed away at 5:45 a.m. Wednesday, June 3, at her home, following a brief battle with cancer. She was born Aug. 8, 1938, in Sturgis, to Merle and Lorena (Garman) Kesslar. Surviving are a daughter, Lorrie Krontz, and a son, Lonnie Longacre, both of Middlebury; six grandchildren, Eric, …

Robert “Lynn” Wagner, age 70, of Colon, passed away peacefully May 27, 2020, at his home in his sleep. He was born March 23, 1950, a son of Robert and Velma Wagner. Robert enjoyed entertaining friends and family on his pontoon boat with his beloved dog, Jesse. He loved fishing and hunting and mushroom hunting. He enjoyed gardening and canning. …

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Friday that barbershops and other personal-care businesses can reopen across Michigan on June 15, while those businesses and places like gyms and movie theaters that were shut down for months to curb the coronavirus can restart in northern Michigan next week. Also, the state health department for the first time began reporting probable COVID-19 cases and deaths, not …

Eduardo Rubio Almanza, age 75, of Sturgis, passed away Tuesday afternoon, June 2, 2020, at Ascension Borgess Hospital in Kalamazoo. He was born April 23, 1945, in Zinapecuaro, Michoacan, Mexico, a son of the late Jose Maria Rubio and Mariede Jesus Almanza. Eduardo resided in the Sturgis area since 1995, coming from Michoacan. On March 25, 1965, he married Gracia …

Fire damaged or destroyed at least five homes in Kalamazoo, including one where an 84-year-old woman had lived for more than four decades, authorities said Wednesday. The woman was not injured, the Department of Public Safety said. The other properties were vacant. The fires were reported around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. Kalamazoo, which was under a 7 p.m. curfew, has been …

Jeffery Alan Miller, affectionately known as Jeff, age 51, resident of De Queen, Arkansas, passed from this life on Saturday, May 30, 2020 in Portland, Texas. Jeff was born to Ray and Pat Miller on July 14, 1968 in South Bend. He was a 1986 graduate of White Pigeon High School, and faithfully served his country with the United States …

Police officers in Kalamazoo were outnumbered 50-to-1 before using tear gas and chemical spray in the wee hours Tuesday to get rid of protesters and stop damage at downtown businesses, authorities said. “It was not our community’s finest hour,” said Karianne Thomas, chief of public safety. She said peaceful protests Monday over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis turned …