Obituaries

Donna passed away Saturday, September 29, 2018 at the Wings Home in Allegan.She was born June 13, 1927 in Plainwell the daughter of Wesley and Julia (Hotchkiss) Stratton. For more than 10 years Donna had worked at Kal-quip. In her spare time she enjoyed ceramics, trips to the casino, playing bingo and watching soap operas.In 1946 she married Arthur Slack...

Gary Ray (Buzz) Foster, 64, of Allegan, Michigan, was welcomed into heaven September 24, 2018, surrounded by family after a 7-month battle with cancer.Gary was born June 1, 1954, in Plainwell, Michigan; the son of Robert & Barbara Foster. He graduated from Otsego High School in 1972. He was married to Barbara Wert from 1983-1999. Gary worked at Rock Tenn...

Judy passed away peacefully, Tuesday, September 25, 2018 at the Wings Home in Allegan surrounded by loved ones.She was born March 14, 1953 in Kalamazoo the daughter of Donald and Faith (Hill) Sheaffer. Judy graduated from Gull Lake High School in 1971. In her free time she enjoyed reading, trips to the casino, listening to music, doing crafts, fishing and...

Mary passed away Friday, September 21, 2018 at her home in Kalamazoo.She was born in Lake Forest, Illinois on September 16, 1926 to Charles and Rachael (Hart) Jacobs.  She was a 1944 Otsego High School graduate. Mary met and wed Irwin Frank “Bunker” Hill Jr. in 1947 and became a military wife and devoted mother. She lived a joyful life...

Phyllis passed away Thursday, September 20, 2018 at her daughter Jody’s home in Plainwell.She was born July 12, 1934 in Kalamazoo the daughter of Floyd and Ada (Merrill) Taylor. Phyllis was a Martin High School graduate where she had played the French horn in the band. She had always loved music and enjoyed singing and playing the piano. For several...

Juanita passed away Wednesday, September 19, 2018 at the Wings Home in Allegan.She was born in Kalamazoo on February 16, 1931 to Spencer and Millicent (Smith) Sherwood. She had worked at the Kalamazoo Sled Company, as a realtor in Otsego and had owned and operated Hilltop Adult Foster Care Home.Juanita loved to dance and sing. She enjoyed music and square...

Ed passed away Saturday, September 15, 2018 at Kairos Dwelling in Kalamazoo.He was born November 15, 1924 in Salyersville, Kentucky, the son of Gains and Eunice Arnett. Ed enjoyed farming and loved riding his tractor. He liked tending to his 15 acre garden and caring for his animals. In his free time he enjoyed hunting, fishing, playing cards, going on...

Mary Ellen passed away peacefully Wednesday, September 12, 2018.She was born in Kalamazoo on July 24, 1935, the fourth daughter of five to Ray and Catherine (Neeson) Blanchard. The family moved to the Otsego School District in 1938, she started kindergarten in 1940. There was only one bus then and she was the first kindergartener to be in class all...

Richard “Dick” L. Wood of Kalamazoo passed away Wednesday, September 12, 2018 at Rose Arbor Hospice House.He was the son of Fred J. and Alice Wood of Otsego. He was preceded in death by his parents; sisters, Margaret and Gertrude; brothers, William and Robert and his first wife of 60 years, Eleanor.His loving memory is now shared by his wife,...

Kyra A. Sutton of Allegan, MI passed away Sunday, September 9, 2018 at her home in Allegan.She was born January 5, 1991 in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the daughter of Theron and Hope (Adams) Sutton. Kyra was a 2009 graduate of Lakewood High School in Sumter, South Carolina. She had attended DeVry University and the University of South Carolina.Kyra was proudly serving...

Ken passed away Tuesday, September 11, 2018 at his home in Otsego.He was born August 7, 1944 in Hammond, Indiana the son of Russell and Helen (Paswinski) Kessler. Ken moved to the area in 1990 and for many years he had worked for Wise International. He loved to tinker and liked making things for his grandchildren. He also enjoyed working...

Curtis passed away Monday, September 10, 2018 at his home in Otsego.He was born February 24, 1936 in Grand Rapids, the son of Lawrence and Mary (Beach) Parkhurst. Curtis was a 1954 Comstock Park High School graduate. For many years he had been a surveyor for the Michigan Transportation Right of Way Department until his retirement in 1989.Curtis was a...

Fran passed away Friday, September 7, 2018 at Alamo Nursing Home.She was born July 14, 1916 in Gobles the daughter of Vernon and Isa (Giddings) Niles. Fran enjoyed dancing, shopping, doing crossword puzzles, trips to the casino and playing bridge with her bridge club.She was a member of the Otsego Elks, Otsego VFW Ladies Auxiliary and the United Methodist Church...

Amber passed away Thursday, September 6, 2018 at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo.She was born September 15, 1997 the daughter of Donnie and Carla (Burton) Hedges. Amber was a 2016 Allegan High School graduate and was currently attending Hillside Young Adult Campus. She had volunteered at many local businesses including, Save-A-Lot, My Best Friend’s Inn and Hillside West Cafeteria. Amber enjoyed...

Jim passed away Wednesday, September 5, 2018 at his home in Otsego.He was born March 2, 1942 in Otsego the son of Lewis and Ruth (Robinson) Folk. Jim proudly served his country in the US Air Force. Through the years he had worked for a silo company, Menasha and Walmart. With the help of his family Jim had also demolished...

John passed away Tuesday, September 4, 2018 at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo.He was born January 18, 1945 in Chicago the son of Elliott and Virginia (Sims) Jaeger. John proudly served his country in the US Marine Corp in Vietnam in communications from 1967 to 1970. John loved to run. He attended DePaul University with a track and field scholarship and...

Ronnie passed away Wednesday, August 29, 2018 at Hallmark Living in Kalamazoo.He was born October 8, 1955 in Plainwell the son of Joe and Clarice (Bailey) Fitzpatrick. Ronnie had worked at Rock Tenn Paper Mill in Otsego. After the mill closed he moved with his family to Arkansas. There he had worked for Cherokee Village Service Center until his health...

Flora passed away Sunday, August 19, 2018 in Kalamazoo.She was born August 28, 1942 in Ft. Wayne, IN to William and Amanda (Perkins) Little. She enjoyed collecting dolls and and spending time with her family.Surviving are her children, Laura (Michael) Rice of Parchment, Joe Collins of Plainwell, Steve (Lynn) Collins of Holland, Eric Collins of Otsego and Amy (Roger) Foley...

Pamela Ann (Pillars) Phillips 45, of Otsego, MI, passed away on August 19, 2018.Pam was born in Allegan, MI on March 10, 1973 to Jenny & Ron Pillars. She graduated from Otsego High School in 1991 and continued on to receive an Associate’s degree from KVCC. Pam married the love of her life, Douglas James Phillips on October 16, 2010....

Hayes passed away peacefully Sunday, August 19, 2018 surrounded by his loving family at his home in Otsego.He was born in Moberly, Missouri, the son of Bramuel and Ethel (Munden) Belcher. Hayes proudly served his country in the US Marines. He had owned and operated Belcher Welding until his retirement. In his spare time he enjoyed hunting, fishing, reading, being...