Obituaries

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. …

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 …

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 …

Michael Scott Mortimore, age 21, of Marcellus/Dowagiac, passed away on Saturday, May 30, 2020. He was born in Kalamazoo on June 5, 1998 the son of Daniel Scott Mortimore and Tammie Jo Mortimore. Michael graduated from Dowagiac High School in 2017. He loved the outdoors and enjoyed playing softball and played pool on a league. He loved to hunt and …

Edna Artley Howard, age 92, of Sturgis, died Sunday morning, May 31, 2020 at her home surrounded by her children. She was born in Rockwood, Michigan, the daughter of the late J. Kenneth and Ruth (Janney) Artley. Mrs. Howard was a graduate of Monroe High School. She furthered her education at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant where she earned …

Richard A. “Dick” Schaeffer, age 88, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his children, on Friday, May 29, 2020. Dick was born Feb. 4, 1932, in Sturgis, to Harold A. and Kathryn (née Bassett) Schaeffer. His parents’ only and beloved child, Dick was raised on the family farm in White Pigeon, which was purchased by his grandfather, Daniel Erastus Schaeffer, in …

Bonnie Ropp Gray, age 74, of Sturgis, died on Thursday, May 28, 2020, at her home. She was born Oct. 17, 1945, to Anna (Smucker) and Bill Ropp in Detroit. Bonnie lived and attended schools in Detroit and then moved with her family to Goshen around 1963. She met Don Gray on Oct. 16, 1971, and they were married nine …