Obituaries

Cleon Wayne Shultz, age 85, of Sturgis, passed away Sunday, March 11, 2018, at his home. He was born Dec. 5, 1932, in Sharon, Conn., a son of the late Albert and Letha (Grove) Shultz. Cleon resided in Sturgis since 1956, coming from Brighton, Ind., where he was a graduate of Brighton High School with the class of 1957. While …

Marty Stecker, age 60, of Vandalia, passed away Tuesday, March 6, 2018 at home. She was born August 3, 1957 in Kalamazoo, the daughter of William Rufus and Marian Louise (Price) Collum. Marty was an avid movie watcher and she loved to knit, sew and enjoyed quilting. She also previously enjoyed playing darts at the Marcellus V.F.W and what is …

William R. (Bill) Carter, age 77, of Colon, passed away Saturday, March 10, 2018, at his home after a short illness. Bill was born May 31, 1940, in Ann Arbor, a son to late Charles and Vivian (Walker) Carter. Bill grew up in the Plymouth area graduating from Plymouth High School with the Class of 1958. He later lived in …

Deborah Lynn Eckert, age 63, of Sturgis, died Friday, March 9, 2018 at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo. She was born in Sturgis on July 2, 1954 the daughter of Lyle J. and Wava E. (Crotser) Eckert. Debbie attended the Pathfinder Center in Centreville and later worked at ARCH Workshop in Sturgis. She attended the Sturgis Church of the Nazarene. …

Neva Sue Hicks, age 77, of Sturgis, passed away early Saturday morning, March 10, 2018, at her home. She was born May 5, 1940, in Bracken County, Ky., daughter of the late David and Garnett (Jackson) Bell. Neva resided in Sturgis for several years returning from Tennessee four years ago. On Aug. 25, 1962, she married Charles Hicks in Milford, …

Alvin L. Troyer, age 75 years, 2 months, and 9 days, died Saturday, March 10, 2018 at his home. He was born in Hartville, Ohio, on Jan. 1, 1943, the son of Levi B. and Magdalena (Schlabach) Troyer. He was married to Elma Bontrager on Oct. 28, 1965, and they have lived in holy matrimony for 52 years. To this …

Diana “Winkey” Jean Raifsnider, age 71, of Three Rivers, died on Friday, March 9, 2018 at Borgess Medical Center. She was born on July 15, 1946 in Gary, IN, to Margurite Smith. She was raised by her grandparents, Gilbert and Jessy Smith, in Howardsville, MI. Diana graduated from Three Rivers High School. She married Orville Anglemyer, Jr., who preceded her …

Emmy Ellen Knavel, age 82, of Sturgis, passed away Friday morning, March 9, 2018, at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. She was born May 4, 1935, in Detroit, Mich., daughter of the late Fred Leroy and Emma (Koehl) Wheeler. Emmy resided in Sturgis since 1946, coming from Detroit. On July 28, 1972, she married Harvey Knavel in Sturgis. Emmy retired …

Geraldine (Jerry) L. (Bartold) White died peacefully in her sleep on Wednesday, March 7, 2018, surrounded by family, at OSF Sacred Heart Medical Center in Danville, Ill. Jerry was born March 10, 1930, in Sturgis, to Peter and Clara (Kibiloski) Bartold. She graduated from Sturgis High School and attended Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo for two years. On June 29, …

William Michael “Mike” Fittro, age 74, of Marshall, was stricken at home and passed away Friday, March 2, 2018, at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo, surrounded by his loving family. He was born June 2, 1943, in Fostoria, Ohio, a son of Daniel M. and Carolyn L. (Sanders) Fittro. He graduated from Olivet High School (1961), Olivet College (1968) and …