Russell I. Avery, 82, of Kalamazoo, and formerly of Sturgis, died March 9, 2012, at Rose Arbor Hospice Residence in Kalamazoo. He was born June 19, 1929, in Lowell, a son of Harvey and Thelma (Perry) Avery. He attended Sturgis High School. Russ owned and operated Russ Avery Marine in Portage for more than 40 years, retiring in 1999. He …

Karen St. Stiles, age 67, of Sturgis, passed away unexpectedly Sunday, March 11, 2012, at her home. She was born Feb. 24, 1945 in Coldwater, the only daughter of Ralph and Gladys (Parker) Johns. Karen resided in Sturgis since 1972, coming from Coldwater, and was a graduate of Coldwater High School with the class of 1963. On Oct. 8, 1966 …

Gerald Raymond Meyer, age 86, of Centreville, went home to be with his Lord Jesus, Sunday, March 11, 2012. He was born Dec. 15, 1925, in Muskegon, a son of Raymond and Minnie (Roselle) Meyer. Sixty-eight years ago in 1944, he married Ellamaree Maxin of Grand Rapids; and together they raised their son, Barry, and daughter, Paula. Gerald led a …

St. Joseph County Clerk Pattie Bender announced Monday that she plans to file her petitions to seek the office of clerk and register of deeds in 2013. The election for the newly combined offices is in November. Bender, 61, was hired into the clerk’s office in 1970 and has served as county clerk since 1991. She is completing her fifth, …

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department was called over the weekend to Sherman Township, where a farmer reported the theft of copper wire from an irrigation system. The incident took place late Friday or early Saturday at a location on Grim Road, near Schrader Road. Stolen from two towers was about 165 feet of copper wiring, wrapped in black casing. …

Three Rivers Fire Department firefighters pulled a man from a smoke-filled apartment over the weekend. Fire personnel responded to a report of activated smoke detectors and the smell of smoke at an apartment on Lockport Drive around 6 a.m. Sunday. After getting no response from the occupant of the apartment, firefighters forced their way into the smoke-filled residence and found …

The Animal Rescue Fund of St. Joseph County has announced the date of its annual dinner-auction benefit. The agency’s 10th annual dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. April 28 in the cafeteria at Three Rivers High School. The auction portion of the event starts at 6:30 p.m. Outback Steakhouse of Kalamazoo is donating, preparing and serving the meal. Tickets are $10 …

Floyd Hagenbuch, Jr., age 82 of rural Three Rivers, died Friday March 9, 2012 at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. He was born in Three Rivers on Aug. 2, 1929 the son of Floyd and Violet (Bingaman) Hagenbuch and was a lifetime resident of the Three Rivers area. He graduated from Three Rivers High School with the class of 1947. …

George E. Comeau of Three Rivers passed away early Tuesday morning, March 6, 2012, at the home of his daughter’s family. He was born March 1, 1927 in Three Rivers, the son of the late Edward G. and Miriam (Freese) Comeau. George was employed at Dock Foundry and Armstrong Machine Works until his retirement in 1989. He was a member …

Thomas John Lowry of Marcellus died Thursday, March 8, 2012, at Bronson Methodist Hospital. He was 85. He was born May 15, 1926, in Dubuque, Iowa, to Emmet and Irene (Hilliard) Lowry. He married Yvonne Imogene (Bohne) in 1954. Tom was a lifelong teacher, enlightening students at Pershing Elementary, Berwyn, Ill., Dundee Middle School, Dundee, Ill., and Marcellus Elementary and …