Obituaries

George Fredric Tracy, age 87, of Sturgis, passed away Saturday afternoon, May 19, 2018, at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. He was born Dec. 30, 1930, in Alma, Mich., son of the late Freddie and Iva (Zimmerman) Tracy. George resided in Sturgis since 2011 coming from Zephyrhills, Fla., where he lived several years. His early life was spent in Lansing. …

Richard A. Miller, age 73, of Colon, passed away May 4, 2018, at his home after several months of failing health. Richard was born July 26, 1944, in Kalamazoo, a son to the late Robert C. and Marguerite J. (Hughey) Miller. He had lived most of his life in Colon, attending Colon Schools and had been employed for the past …

Joe Belshaw, age 83, of Three Rivers, died unexpectedly on Sunday, May 20, 2018 at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo. He was born in Hammond, Indiana on July 22, 1934 the son of Marshall Elliot Belshaw and Stella Arlene (Newkirk) Belshaw. He attended schools in Indiana and served in the U.S. Air Force. Joe has been a southwest Michigan car …

Marian L. Speece went home peacefully at Heartland Health Care Center on Friday, May 18, 2018 in Three Rivers, at the age 92.  She was born on November 17, 1925 in Three Rivers to Kenneth and Claudia (Bingaman) VanOver.  On June 28, 1946, in Burlington, Michigan, she married Lawrence E. Speece who preceded her in death on June 14, 1986, just two …

Clifford LaVerne Sowers, age 90, of Kalamazoo, died Friday, May 18, 2018 at Kairo’s Dwelling in Kalamazoo. He was born in Greenville, MI on Oct. 21, 1927 the son of Clifford Henry Sowers and Estella M. (Albright) sowers. He graduated from Grand Ledge High School in 1945 and later attended Western Michigan University and Glen Oaks Community College. Clifford served …

Jane L. Roberts, age 94, passed away Wednesday, May 16th, 2018 at Heartland Healthcare. Jane was born November 8, 1923 in Niles, the daughter of Grace and Earl Burge. Jane was married to Jack Roberts, they had three children- Judith Kay, Nancy Jo, and Terry Lee. They moved to Marcellus from Three Rivers in 1951, where she resided until her …

Dr. Thomas E. Mathews, age 87, of Three Rivers, died Thursday, May 17, 2018 at his home following a long illness. He was born in Johannesburg, MI on Sep. 24, 1930 the son of the late James W. and Lena L. (McCoy) Mathews. He worked on his father’s farm while growing up and graduated from Johannesburg High School in 1947 …

Craig W. Dunlap, 50, of Nottawa, passed away peacefully on Thursday, May 17, 2018 surrounded by his family. He was born in Angola, IN on July 26, 1967, a son of Keith and Eloise (Wallace) Dunlap. Craig graduated from Angola High School and went on to attend Indiana University and Indiana State University before graduating with his doctoral degree from …

William E. Harter, age 70, of Sturgis, passed away Wednesday afternoon, May 16, 2018, at Rose Arbor Hospice in Kalamazoo. He was born Sept. 9, 1947, in Sturgis, a son of the late Virgil Martin and Viola Belle (Nusbaum) Harter. Bill was a lifelong Sturgis resident and graduate of Sturgis High School with the class of 1965. He retired from …

Shirley Mae Adams, age 80, of Sturgis, passed away early Saturday morning, May 5, 2018, at her home. She was born Sept. 8, 1937, in Sturgis, a daughter of the late Ivan and Grace (McGary) Notestine. Shirley was a lifelong Sturgis resident. On April 25, 1953, she married Ralph Adams in LaGrange, Ind. She worked as a waitress for many …