Obituaries

Esther Mae Dodson, 94, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Friday morning, March 20, 2009, at Thurston Woods Village in Sturgis. She was born March 4, 1915, in Spring City, Tenn., a daughter to the late Joseph and Almedia (Loden) Collins and raised by Annie and Schyler Gilkison in Findley, Mich. Esther attended school in Colon, Mich., and Spring City, Tenn. …

James W. Schmidlin, age 47 of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Saturday evening, March 14, 2009, in Sherman Township, Mich., due to injuries sustained in an automobile accident. He was born Feb. 9, 1962, in Coldwater, a son to Charles and Jean (Greene) Schmidlin. Jim had resided in Sturgis for the past seven years coming from Lambertville, Mich. He was a …

Annette J. Laferty, 73, of sturis, Mich., died March 16, 2009 at her home following an extended illness. She was born March 4, 1936 in Chicago, a daughter to Nicholas and Louise (Sulkowski) Sansone. Her early life was spent in Chicago and Sturgis. She was a 1953 graduate of Sturgis High School and a White Pigeon resident for 30 years. She …

BethAnn Marie Divelbiss, age 34 of Mendon, died unexpectedly on Monday, March 16, 2009 at her home.  She was born in New Kensington, PA on Sep. 16, 1974 the daughter of LeRoy and Irene (Kremer) Divelbiss, Jr.  She attended Mendon Schools, and later graduated from the Three Rivers Adult Education Program.  She was married to Charles VanZile in 1992; they …

A memorial service for James R. Van Atta is at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday at the First Presbyterian Church in White Pigeon. Van Atta, of Chicago and formerly of Sturgis, died Oct. 30, 2008. Local arrangements by Farrand Funeral Home.

Leon S. Kimball, 89, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Feb. 28, 2009, at the Sturgis Hospital emergency room. He was born Jan.21, 1920, in Sturgis, Mich., a son to the late Ray and Elsie (Squires) Kimball. Leon had resided in Sturgis his whole life. On March 3, 1945, he married Rolla Grattan at Fort Bragg, NC. This marriage ended in …

Gerald Anthony “Jerry” Kaluzny, age 79 of Mendon, died Friday, March 13, 2009, at Rose Arbor Hospice in Kalamazoo.  He was born in Detroit on Aug. 5, 1929, the son of the late Albert and Mary (Fary) Kalauzny and attended schools in the Detroit area. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.  He then married Jeanette Poteau …

Harriet E. Reed, age 83, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away Thursday, March 12, 2009, at her home. She was born Nov. 8, 1925, in Marshall, Mich., a daughter to the late Ardey and Minnie (Coats) Reniger. Harriet has been a resident of Sturgis since 1960 moving here from Marshall.         On April 19, 1943, in Marshall, she married Donald R. Reed.  …

Naomi R. Steffey, 98, of Sturgis, Mich., passed away March 3, 2009, at Thurston Woods Village in Sturgis. She was born Jan. 20, 1911, in Decatur, Ind., a daughter to the late Edward Edwin and Edith (Dean) Gilbert. Naomi had resided in Sturgis since 1951 coming from Bronson, Mich. She retired from the American Red Cross following many years of …

Dean Heywood, 96, died Tuesday, March 10.   He married Alice Standerline in 1936.  He and his wife were the parents of three children.  He worked at Eddy Paper Co. beginning in 1933, and later worked at Armstrong International starting in 1942, until retirement in 1977.  Services will be held at St. John’s Lutheran Church on Saturday at 11am, with visitation …