HURON DAILY TRIBUNE, Bad Axe, Huron County, Michigan Local obituaries for the week beginning December 21, 2003 Contributed 2003 by Carol Morrison for use in the USGenWeb Archives. USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. Sunday, December 21, 2003 Nevin McIntyre Nevin McIntyre, 85, of Bad Axe, passed away Friday, December 19, 2003, at Huron Medical Center in Bad Axe. He was born on January 18, 1918 in Bad Axe, son of the late Colin and Cynthia (Clark) McIntyre. He married Julia Stephenson on November 19, 1943 in the Bad Axe First Baptist Church parsonage. Mr. McIntyre was a Verona Township farmer and worked for Super Foods in Vassar for 20 years. He was a member of the Bad Axe Free Methodist Church and a member of the Farm Bureau. He is survived by his wife, Julia McIntyre, of Bad Axe; two sons, Eugene McIntyre and his wife, Judy, of Bad Axe, and Bill McIntyre, of Port Austin; one daughter, Christine McIntyre, of Bad Axe; one brother, Colin McIntyre, of Bad Axe; one sister, Jean Rapson, of Vassar; four grandchildren, Scott McIntyre and his wife, Rachelle, of Kinde, Shelley Langley and her husband, Kevin, of Bad Axe, Shawn McIntyre and his wife, June, of Sandusky, and Ashley Gale, of Bad Axe; seven great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews. Services will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, December 23, 2003, at the Bad Axe Free Methodist Church. Burial will be in Colfax Township Cemetery. Visitation will be from 7 to 9 p.m. today and 1 to 9 p.m. on Monday at the Kaufman Funeral Home in Bad Axe and 10 to 11 a.m. on Tuesday at the church. Idella Wills Idella Mabel Wills, 92, of Bad Axe, died Saturday, December 20, 2003, at Huron Medical Center in Bad Axe after a short illness. She was born September 14, 1911 in Battle Creek, daughter of the late Charles and Alma (Fairwell) Theaker. Idella Theaker and Allison Wills were married September 18, 1929 in Bad Axe. He preceded her in death on November 4, 1986. The couple farmed many years in Colfax Township. Mrs. Wills retired in 1973 from the Huron County Medical Care Facility, was a member of the Colfax Methodist Church, and loved to spend time with her family, play cards and bingo. Surviving are one son, Alex Wills and his wife, Jan, of Bad Axe; one daughter, Mrs. Nettie Whear, of Bad Axe; 11 grandchildren; 25 great-grandchildren; and four great- great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by seven brothers, one sister, and two grandsons. Services will be conducted at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 23, 2003, at the H.W. Weitenberner Funeral Home in Bad Axe. The Rev. Richard Shuart will officiate. Burial will be in Colfax Township Cemetery with eight grandsons serving as pallbearers. Visitation will be from 7 to 9 p.m. today, 1 to 9 p.m. on Monday, and 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to the Family Discretionary Fund. Mary Wrubel Mary C. Wrubel, 95, of Harbor Beach, passed away Friday morning, December 19, 2003, in Meadowbrook Nursing Home in Rochester following a stroke on Monday, December 15, 2003. Born in Hamburg, Germany, on November 24, 1908, she was the daughter of the late John and Katherine (Sitek) Mika. On October 19, 1926, Mary was united in marriage to Michael Wrubel in Sandusky. He preceded her in death on November 9, 1996. She was a parishioner of Our Lady of Lake Huron Catholic Church in Harbor Beach and a former member of the Altar Society. Surviving are her seven daughters, Adeline Woyciechowski, of Harbor Beach, Eleanor Roggenbuck and her husband, Bud, of Harbor Beach, Patricia Jimkoski, of Kinde, Sally Andrlik, of Lithia, Florida, Frances Page-Hipkiss and her husband, Arthur, of Shelby Township, Dorothy Hansman, of Troy, and Manette Johnson and her husband, James, of Troy; five sons, Ira Wrubel and his wife, Gladys, of Harbor Beach, Irvin Wrubel and his wife, Shirley, of Mio, Michael Wrubel and his wife, Joyce, of Woodland, Daniel Wrubel and his wife, Norma, of Rochester Hills, and Richard Wrubel and his wife, Marjorie, of Mims, Florida; 54 grandchildren; 101 great-grandchildren; 10 great-great-grandchildren; sisters, Helen Murawski, of Monroe and Dorothy Krause, of Ann Arbor; brother, Joseph Mika and his wife, Kay, of Walled Lake. She was preceded in death by a daughter, Laverne Wrubel, on September 2, 1931; two sisters, Anne Mika and Jean Van Oyen; a brother, John Mika, Jr.; three grandchildren, Douglas Wrubel, Cynthia Jimkoski and Darrell Andrlik; two great-grandchildren, Joseph Kirsch and Jon-Patrick Burnett. A funeral mass will be at 11 a.m. on Monday, December 22, 2003, at Our Lady of Lake Huron Catholic Church in Harbor Beach with Fr. Gerald Kukla, pastor, officiating. Burial will be in the OLLH Catholic Cemetery. A parish rosary will be at 7:30 p.m. today in the Ramsey Funeral Home in Harbor Beach. Visitation will be from 1 to 9 p.m. today at the funeral home and from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m. on Monday at the church. Monday, December 22, 2003 Fronda Janik Mrs. Fronda J. Janik, 52, of Bad Axe, passed away Sunday morning, December 21, 2003, at Huron County Medical Care Facility after a short illness. Fronda was born February 27, 1951 in Owendale to the late Edward and Thelma (Ross) Mellendorf. She married Peter Janik on July 8, 1978 at the Bad Axe Methodist Church. Fronda was a graduate of Owendale High School. Before she was married, she was a beautician in Caro and owned the Beauty Boutique there for four years. She worked as a nurse's aide at the Huron County Medical Care Facility for twelve years. She was a former member of the Cass City Order of the Eastern Star. She enjoyed baking, canning, casinos, visiting and dancing. Fronda is survived by her husband, Peter Janik, of Bad Axe; three sons, Brian Janik and his wife, Tracy, of Bad Axe, Richard Janik, of North Carolina, and Joseph Janik and his wife, Debbie, of Bay City; eight grandchildren; one great granddaughter; two sisters, Linda Mellendorf, of Caseville, and Caroline Harvey and her husband, Gary, of Armada; one brother, Lee Mellendorf and his wife, Betty, of Grandville. Fronda was preceded in death by one son, David. A funeral mass will be at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, December 24, 2003, at St. Columbkille Catholic Church of Sheridan. The Rev. T.J. Fleming, pastor, will officiate. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be at the Zinger-Smigielski Funeral Home of Ubly today from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., Tuesday from 1 to 9:30 p.m. and on Wednesday from 9 to 10 a.m. at the church only. There will be a parish vigil service on Tuesday evening at 7:30 p.m. at the funeral home. Memorials are requested to the Huron County Care Facility. Tuesday, December 23, 2003 – No obituaries reported Wednesday, December 24, 2003 Beverly J. Clark Beverly J. Clark, 68, of Port Hope, passed away Sunday, December 21, 2003, in Harbor Beach Community Hospital. Surviving are several friends. Cremation has taken place and a memorial service will be conducted at a later time. Ramsey Funeral Home of Harbor Beach is handling arrangements. Gerald C. Edler Gerald C. Edler, 67, died Tuesday, December 23, 2003, at Bay Regional Medical Center in Bay City following a 1 1/2 month illness. He was born April 3, 1936 in Pigeon, son of the late Clarence and Stella M. (Wing) Edler. He was united in marriage to Sharron L. Martini on August 8, 1959 in Sebewaing. Gerald had been employed at the Cooperative Elevator in Pigeon for 15 years and later the Unionville-Sebewaing Area School system until his retirement in 1995. He was a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Sebewaing and the former Sebewaing Yacht Club. He enjoyed fishing, hunting and bowling. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserves. He is survived by his wife, Sharron; one daughter, Melissa Halabis and her husband, Mark, of Cass City; one son, Randall Edler and his wife, Saundra, of Sebewaing; three grandchildren, Randall Scott, Cassie Sue and Abbey Jo; one sister, Kay Delbert and her husband, Joslin, of Cedar; one brother, Frederick Edler and his wife, Margaret, of Pigeon; one uncle and aunt, Edward and Edna Wing, of Bad Axe; several nieces and nephews. The funeral service will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 27, 2003, at the Dinkel-Juengel Funeral Home in Sebewaing. The Rev. Charles Kuhl will officiate with burial in Silverlawn Cemetery. Visitation will be from noon to 9 p.m. Friday and from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home. Memorials may be made to Immanuel Lutheran Church or the family discretionary fund. Margaret M. Ewbank Margaret M. Ewbank, 84, of Auburn and formerly of Caseville, died early Monday morning, December 22, 2003, at the Bay Regional Medical Center after a brief illness. Margaret was born November 7, 1919 in Cheboygan, the daughter of the late Berner and Mary (Green) Seaman, and had resided in this area for four years. She was one of six children, served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II, and was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church, Auburn. In 1946 she married Ralph A. Ewbank, and he survives her. Other survivors include: one nephew, Alan Ewbank, of Saginaw, one niece; Lael Thelander and her husband, Charles, of Wisconsin; many other nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, brother and sister in-laws, card partners, swim buddies, neighbors and friends. The funeral liturgy will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Friday, December 26, 2003, at St. Joseph Catholic Church, Auburn. The Rev. Fr. Thomas E. Sutton will officiate. Graveside committal services will be at 2 p.m. on Friday at St. Roch Cemetery, Caseville. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday at the Auburn Chapel of the Cunningham-Taylor Funeral Homes, Inc. For those planning an expression of sympathy, envelopes for St. Joe's Parish and the Y.W.C.A., Bay City, will be available at the funeral home. Willo J. McLachlan Willo J. McLachlan, 89, of Port Hope, died Monday evening, December 22, 2003, at Courtney Manor in Bad Axe. She was born January 10, 1914 in Verona Township, daughter of the late Fred and Alice (Hebner) Ludlow. Willo Ludlow and Carlyle McLachlan were married November 25, 1937 in Ubly by the Rev. Ogle. They recently celebrated 66 years of marriage. Willo was an Eastern Star life member, Orion Fellowship Chapter No. 340. She was very active in United Methodist women's groups, quilting and visiting with her family and friends. Mrs. McLachlan is survived by her husband, Carlyle; three sons, Lyle McLachlan and his wife, Carolyn, of Gaylord, Marvin McLachlan and his wife, Cheryl, of Frankfort, and Gary McLachlan, of Detroit; one brother, Tom Ludlow and his wife, Oril, of Bad Axe; one sister, Evelyn Bensinger, of Ubly; three grandsons, Scott McLachlan and his wife, Jenny, of Cincinnati, Ohio, Steve McLachlan, of Auburn Hills, and Bryan McLachlan and his wife, Amy, of Silverthorne, Colorado; one granddaughter, Jeni Miller and her husband, David, of Gaylord; two great- granddaughters, Christina and Nicole McLachlan; and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by one daughter, Janis McLachlan, and one brother, Herb Ludlow. Funeral services will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 27, 2003, at the MacAlpine Funeral Home in Bad Axe. Visitation will be from 2 to 9 p.m. on Friday, December 26, 2003, at the funeral home. Memorials may be offered to the Port Hope United Methodist Church or Courtney Manor. Thursday, December 25, 2003 – Christmas Holiday Friday, December 26, 2003 Helen Baranski Miss. Helen Baranski, 85, of Palms, passed away Tuesday, December 23, 2003, at Autumnwood of Deckerville. She was born October 25, 1918 in Detroit to the late Faustyn and Mary (Rabinski) Baranski. She never married. Helen was a graduate of Hunts Elementary School. She moved to Detroit for domestic cleaning and worked as "Rosey, the Riveter" for Briggs Manufacturing Company. In 1945 she returned home to be a homemaker, care for family members, and farm. She was a parishioner at St. Patrick Catholic Church in Palms. Helen is survived by one brother, Bruno Baranski, of Marietta, Georgia; several nieces and nephews. Helen was preceded in death by three brothers, George, Carl and Dominic Baranski; one sister, Virginia Dershem. Funeral services will be at 6 p.m. on Sunday, December 28, 2003, at the Smigielski Funeral Home in Minden City. Sr. Betty Zeestraten, pastoral administrator of St. Patrick's, will officiate. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be from 2:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sunday at the Smigielski Funeral Home on Cass Ave. in Minden City. Donald Deichmann Donald Deichmann, 74, of Bad Axe, passed away on Thursday, December 25, 2003, at his home following an extended illness. A complete obituary will be published in Sunday's edition of the Huron Daily Tribune. Arrangements are being handled by the Kaufman Funeral Home in Bad Axe. James Detgen James Detgen, 53, of Harbor Beach, passed away on Tuesday, December 23, 2003, in William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, following a short illness. Born in Harbor Beach on February 19, 1950, he was the son of Sylvester Detgen and the late Dorothea (Hurren) Detgen. On June 14, 1969, Doris Siemen and Jim were united in marriage in Harbor Beach. Jim was an employee of the Dow AgroScience Company of Harbor Beach, working there for 25 years. He was a member of the Harbor Beach Gun Club, the Harbor Beach Golf League, and enjoyed doing woodworking projects and camping. Jim was a parishioner of Our Lady of Lake Huron Catholic Church in Harbor Beach. Surviving are his wife, Doris Detgen, of Harbor Beach; his father, Sylvester Detgen; his sons, James Detgen, Jr. and his wife, Tami, of Dundee, and Kris Detgen of Harbor Beach; two grandchildren, Samantha and Garrett Detgen; one brother, David Detgen and his wife, Caren, of Panama City, Florida; and three sisters, Linda Reid and her husband, Robert, of Harbor Beach, Bobbi Hallock and her husband, Victor, of Williamston, and Amy Rossman, of Berlin Township. Funeral mass for James Detgen will be at noon on Saturday, December 27, 2003, in the Ramsey Funeral home, Harbor Beach, with Fr. Gerald Kukla, pastor of O.L.L.H. Church, officiating. Burial will be in the New River Cemetery, Huron City. Visitation will be from 1 to 9 p.m. today and from 10:30 until the time of the service on Saturday at the funeral home. Hazel MacDonald Hazel MacDonald, 92, of East Pointe, died Tuesday, December 23, 2003, at the Courtney Manor in Bad Axe. She was born March 24, 1912 in Bad Axe, daughter of the late Alexander and Mary (St. George) MacDonald. Hazel enjoyed playing bingo and cards, especially solitaire. She is survived by one son, Kenneth MacDonald and his wife, Betty, of Chicago; one sister, Lillian Bair, of Bad Axe; one brother, John MacDonald, of Bad Axe; 11 grandchildren, Bradley MacDonald, of Warren, Elizabeth Szczepanski and her husband, Gerard, of East Pointe, Edward MacDonald, of Bad Axe, Kathy Niezgoda, of Pulaski, Tennessee, Kenneth MacDonald and his wife, Cheryl, of East Pointe, Mary Gorkowski and her husband, John, of Filion, Diane Newby and her husband, Dean, of East Pointe, William MacDonald, of Bay City, Michael Kaminsky, of Lansing, Steven Kaminsky, of Ohio, Andrea Kaminsky, of Chicago; 13 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren. Hazel was preceded in death by four sisters, Mary Russell, Gertrude Brown, Clarabell Bailey, and Jenny Osentoski; three brothers, Ronald MacDonald, Erwin MacDonald, and Howard MacDonald; and one brother-in-law, Benjamin Bair. Funeral services will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 27, 2003, at Kaul Funeral Home in Roseville. Visitation will be from 3 to 9 p.m. today at the funeral home. Burial will be at Resurrection Cemetery in Clinton Township. Funeral information was provided by MacAlpine Funeral Home. Gertrude Meyer Gertrude F. Meyer, 90, of Harbor Beach, passed away Thursday, December 25, 2003, in the long term care unit of the Harbor Beach Community Hospital. Born in Harbor Beach on February 9, 1913, she was the daughter of the late William and Frances (Smaglinski) Koss. On October 30, 1933, Gertrude and Arnold Meyer were united in marriage. Arnold preceded her in death on February 29, 1972. Gertrude was a member of the Our Lady of Lake Huron Catholic Church in Harbor Beach and a member of the Altar Society. She enjoyed playing bingo and cards and reading. Surviving are her children, Peter Meyer and his wife, Celia, of Warren, Edward Meyer, of Harbor Beach, Kenneth Meyer and his wife, Donna, of Port Hope, Mary Meyer, of Harbor Beach, Gertrude Meyer, of East Dubuque, Illinois. Patricia Gross and her husband, Ronald, of Harbor Beach; 17 grandchildren and great-grandchildren; also by a sister, Agnes Sopczynski and her husband, Stanley, of Harbor Beach. Gertrude was preceded in death by two sons, Arnold and Leo Meyer; four brothers, Theophilus, Peter, William, and Edward Koss; and two sisters, Helen Tebo and Mary Martin. A funeral mass for Gertrude Meyer will be at 11 a.m. on Monday, December 29, 2003, in Our Lady of Lake Huron Catholic Church, Harbor Beach, with Steve Gavett officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery. A parish vigil service will be at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday in the Ramsey Funeral Home, Harbor Beach. Visitation will be from 7 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, from 1 to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home and from 10 a.m. until the time of the services on Monday at the church. Eleanor Weiss Eleanor Weiss, 81, of Pigeon, passed away Christmas Eve, December 24, 2003, at Troy Beaumont Hospital following a brief illness. She was born March 27, 1922, daughter of the late John and Martha (Volz) Sticken. On February 27, 1943, she was united in marriage to Arnold A. Weiss at St. Paul Lutheran Church, Linkville. He preceded her in death on August 12, 1998. Eleanor was a 1940 graduate of Owendale High School and the Bay City School of Business. She and her late husband, Arnold, were members of the Farm Bureau. She was an active member of St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Berne. Her survivors include two daughters, Sharon Stocker and her husband, William, of Clinton Township, and Charlotte Anderson, of Elkhorn, Wisconsin; two sons, Dennis Weiss and his wife, Rebecca, of Novi, and Curtis Weiss and his wife, Lisa, of Marne; four granddaughters and four grandsons, Terri Stocker, Corrine Stocker, Devin Anderson, Danelle Bartz, Andrew Weiss, Adam Weiss, Ryan Weiss, and Lydia Weiss; five great- grandchildren, Benjamin, Courtney, Madison, Rachel, and Nicholas; a brother, Arnold Sticken and his wife, Janet, of Owendale; and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by a sister, Florence Armbruster; a brother, Arthur Sticken; and half- brother, Wallace Sticken. Funeral service will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 27, 2003, from St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Berne, with the Rev. James A. Gorsegner, pastor, officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be from 1 to 9 p.m. today at the Meyersieck-Bussema Funeral Home in Pigeon and from 10 a.m. until the time of the service at 11 a.m. on Saturday at the church. Memorials may be made to St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church or the American Diabetes Association. Mary Shpilia Mary B. Shpilia, 82, of Caseville, died Wednesday, December 24, 2003, at her home while under hospice care. She was born June 16, 1920 in Detroit to the late Anthony and Bernice (Wejda) Liezezyk. On July 1, 1939, she was united in marriage to John Shpilia at Our Lady of Christians Catholic Church, Detroit. They lived in the Detroit area until 1980 when they retired to the cottage they built in 1962 in Lake Township. Mr. Shpilia preceded her in death on November 21, 2002. She was a member of St. Roch Catholic Church, Caseville, and enjoyed traveling and antique hunting. She and her friends would search and buy all day, then send their husbands back to pick up the loot. Surviving are her daughter, Marlene Sharples, of Caseville; three grandchildren, Laura Scott and her husband, Jeff, of Memphis, Lloyd Cox and his wife, Janet, of Redford, and Kevin Sharples and his wife, Michelle, of Pinckney; her grandchildren, Kelli, Holli, Leah, Keegan, Ashley, Ryan, Brett, and Britney and her husband, Jason; great-granddaughter, Haley; and her sister, Bernice Hudzik, of Caseville. She was preceded in death by her sister, Frances Dreslinski; and two brothers, Alex and Walter Liszczyk. A funeral mass will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Monday, December 29, 2003, at St. Roch Catholic Church, Caseville. The Rev. Fr. Kenneth Yaroch, pastor, will officiate with burial in the church cemetery. A rosary service will be conducted at 7 p.m. on Sunday at the Champagne Funeral Chapel, Caseville. Visitation will be from 7 to 9 p.m. on Saturday and from 2 to 9 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home and after 10 a.m. on Monday at the church. Memorials may be given to the church. Friends may sign the guest book at www.CFCcaseville.com. 1