Obituaries

Carlton Theodore Pursley, age 79, of Sturgis, passed away Saturday evening, Aug. 28, 2010, at Thurston Woods Village in Sturgis. He was born April 6, 1931, in Sturgis, a son of the late Carlton Theodore and Blanche Ruth (VonMeter) Pursley. Carlton was a lifelong Sturgis area resident and a graduate of Sturgis High School with the class of 1950. On …

Ronald James Yake, 68, of Sturgis, passed away Friday afternoon, Aug. 27, 2010, at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. He was born Oct. 26, 1941, in Fawn River Township, Michigan a son of the late William and Clarice (Gilbert) Yake. Ron was a lifelong Sturgis-area resident and graduated from Brighton High School in Brighton, Ind., with the class of 1959. …

Steven Andrew Nerad, age 41, of Three Rivers, passed away tragically on Tuesday, August 24, 2010 following a motorcycle accident. He was born on November 2, 1968 in Royal Oak, MI. the son of James John and Marian (White) Nerad. Steven graduated from Three Rivers High School in 1986. He was recently employed by Morse Metal Fabrications in Granger, IN. …

Jean Marie Ward, 73, of Three Rivers, Michigan passed away Tuesday, August 24, 2010 surrounded by her loving family. She was born October 21, 1936 in Kalamazoo, MI., the daughter of Jerry C. and Dorothy (Chambers) Miller. Jeannie was a lifetime resident of Three Rivers. She married Frank E. (Drake) Ward on March 24, 1956. She enjoyed cooking and crocheting, …

Pauline V. (King) Merriman, 96, of Sturgis, passed away Wednesday morning, Aug. 25, 2010, at Heartland Health Care Center in Three Rivers. She was born Oct. 24, 1913, in Sturgis, a daughter of the late Harvey and Louise (Frohriep) Bogues. Pauline graduated from Sturgis High School with the class of 1931 and was a lifelong Sturgis resident until moving to Kissimmee, …

Henry H. Moyer, age 59, of Mendon, died Saturday Aug. 7, 2010, at his home. He was born in Vicksburg, Mich., on July 18, 1951, the son of the late Shirley Roland and Barbara Jean (Hoover) Moyer, and was a lifetime resident of the area. Henry served with the U.S. Army in Vietnam in 1969 and 1970. He was married …

Beverly Jane “Bev” Snyder, age 88 of Mendon, died Monday Aug. 23, 2010 at her daughter’s home near Vicksburg. She was born in Kalamazoo on May 10, 1922 the daughter of Carl and Lela (Salt) Given. Following the death of her parents, Bev was raised by her three aunts and was a graduate of Battle Creek Central High School at …

Jesse A. Payne, 17, of Quincy, and formerly of Sturgis, died unexpectedly, Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2010, in Quincy. Jesse was born Sept. 22, 1992, in Sturgis, to Starr Payne. He spent most of his life in the Sturgis area, where he had attended the Salvation Army Church, coming to Quincy eight years ago. Jesse had worked at Poly Green Foam …

Larry L. Campbell, age 72, of Colon, passed away Saturday, Aug. 21, 2010, at Borgess Medical Center in Kalamazoo, after an extended illness. Larry was born Feb. 1, 1938, in Three Rivers, a son to the late AJ and Florence A. (Wood) Campbell. Larry had lived most all of his life in St. Joseph County, graduating from Colon High School …

Cherryl A. Shull, 63, Syracuse, Ind., died Sunday, at her home after a 2 1/2 year illness. She was born Feb. 20, 1947, in Three Rivers, Mich., to Franklin Lutz of White Pigeon, Mich., and the late Beverly (Wilkins) Lutz. She married David Hayes on July 7, 1968 in White Pigeon. She then married David Shull on May 26, 2007 …