Obituaries

John Herbert “Herb” Bazur, 88, of Fort Wayne, Ind., died peacefully at home on Aug. 20, 2012. Herb was born April 15, 1924, in Cleveland, Ohio, to John and Loretta (Grady) Bazur. At 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy followed by the Merchant Marines and served in the North Atlantic during World War II. At Baldwin Wallace College in …

Patricia A. Papke, 76, of White Pigeon, died Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012, at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo following a short illness. She was born March 3, 1936, in White Pigeon, a daughter of H. Russell and Mary (Gross) Lough. She was first married to William R. (Buck) Tavernier. That marriage ended in divorce. On March 1, 1986, she married Irwin E. …

Peggy E. Sears, 52, of Newaygo and formerly of Three Rivers, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012 at her home. Peggy was born on Dec. 15, 1959 in Three Rivers to John and Janice (Westphal) Sears. Peggy had been a production worker in the manufactured homes industry near Three Rivers for several years prior to moving to the …

Donald Ray Ware, age 84, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 28, 2012, at his home. He was born June 3, 1928, in Three Rivers, Mich., a son of the late Victor and Delcie (Johnson) Ware. Ray resided in Sturgis the past 50 years. His early life was lived in Colon and he was a graduate of Colon …

Christopher Scot (Saddison) Thompson, 41, of Needles, Calif., died July 12, 2012. He was born May 20, 1971, to Mary Saddison and Terry Saddison and the adoptive son of Bob Thompson and Marte E. Cadwell. Surviving are sisters Victoria, Stefanie and Johnna Zeyton; children, Donald, Amanda and Abby; and grandchildren Landon and Eli. Preceding him in death were his step-father Carl …

Martin “Marty” Everette Barth, 77, of Three Rivers, passed away on Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012 at the University of Michigan Hospital following a brief illness. He was born on Jan. 23, 1935 in Detroit, the son of Martin Henry and Beatrice (Stebbins) Barth. Marty and his late wife Jan, who preceded him in death in 2010, have been long time …

Shirley J. Newcomer, 65, previous resident of Constantine and Temple, passed away on Aug. 22, 2012 in Lancaster, Pa. unexpectedly from health complications too great to overcome. Shirley was born March 16, 1947 in East Bank, W.Va. She married Michael Newcomer on July 22, 1966 in Elkhart, Ind. He preceded her in death along with her mother and father, Geraldine …

Leslie Louise “Zezzie” (Dobberteen) Newcomb, age 56, of Albuquerque, N.M., left this world after a courageous struggle with illness Sunday Aug. 12, 2012, at Vista Care Hospice in Albuquerque. She will join her father, Joseph F. Dobberteen, and other loved ones to be with Jesus in Heaven. She is survived by her loving husband, David K. Newcomb; mother, Alice O. Dobberteen of …

Betty Rosemary Keeslar, age 87, of Burr Oak, Mich., passed away late Friday evening, Aug. 10, 2012, at the Sturgis Hospital in Sturgis. She was born May 1, 1925, in Boyne City, daughter of the late Clarence and Margaret Ellen (Justice) Buckler. Betty resided in Burr Oak since 1999 coming from Gaylord. Prior to that she lived in California. Much …

Nancy J. Betcke, age 61, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Friday morning, Aug. 24, 2012, at Rose Arbor Hospice Residence in Kalamazoo, Mich. She was born Aug. 24, 1951, in Sturgis, Mich., daughter of the late, Albert and Betsy (Poley) Pierucki. Nancy was a lifelong Sturgis area resident and a graduate of Centreville High School with the class of 1969. …