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Donald N. Keeps
WATERVLIET -- Donald's life began July 6, 1911, in Perry, Ill., to Perry and Alice (Sutton) Keeps. Donald spent his lifetime living in the Michiana area, first in South Bend, Ind., and then later in Watervliet. He worked for many years for Michiana Wholesale out of Indiana. Donald was a charter member of the Covert Lions club and served as their secretary for many years. Being a people person, he enjoyed volunteering his time through North Berrien Senior Center's outreach program.
Donald will be remembered for being a great conversationalist and his love for woodworking. He loved sports and enjoyed managing his sons' Little League teams when they were little.
Donald's greatest love was his family, which includes: his wife, Anna L. Keeps, whom he married on Oct. 18, 1978; four sons -- Donald Lawrence Keeps of St. Joseph, Perry (Molly) Keeps of Osceola, Ind., W.E. (Joyce) Griffin of Watervliet and Fred (Charleen) Griffin of Romeoville, Ill.; a daughter, Agnes Dolores (Ralph) Peterson of Osceola, Ind.; seven grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; three great-great-grandchildren; a sister, Iris Kenney of Oak Lawn, Ill.; many nieces, nephews and cousins.
Donald died Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2003, at South Haven Health Care Centre.
His first wife, Evelyn, his parents, a brother, Gordon Norton, and a sister, Elsie Owens, preceded him in death.
Friends may visit with Donald's family today, Aug. 7, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Hutchins Funeral Home, Watervliet, where funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8. Donald will then be interred next to his first wife, Evelyn, at 3 p.m. at St. Joseph Valley Memorial Park in South Bend, Ind., on Friday, Aug. 8. Memorials may be directed to the Alzheimer's Association.
Carrie Williams
BENTON HARBOR -- Carrie Williams, 89, departed this life on Sunday, July 27, 2003.
She was a resident of Benton Harbor for 46 years, then moved to Columbus, Ohio, where she resided for 16 years.
Funeral arrangements entrusted to Wayne T. Lee Funeral Services, 1370 East Main St., Columbus, Ohio, 43205. Cards and flowers may be sent to Meredith Temple Church of God in Christ, 1158 Mount Vernon Ave., Columbus, Ohio, 43203.
John P. Gieszer
ST. JOSEPH -- John P. Gieszer, 91, of St. Joseph, died Saturday, Feb. 1, 2003, at Lakeland Continuing Care Center in St. Joseph.
Services will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Dey-Florin Chapel of Florin Funeral Service in St. Joseph. Burial will follow in Riverview Cemetery in St. Joseph. The visitation will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. today in the Dey-Florin Chapel. Memorials may be made to Alzheimer's Research or to Emphysema Research.
Mr. Gieszer was born on July 6, 1911, in Chicago. He married the former Dorothy Lanning on Feb. 6, 1947, and she preceded him in death on Aug. 25, 2002. Mr. Gieszer was employed at Auto Specialties for over 27 years when he retired in January of 1974. He was director of human resources. Mr. Gieszer was a veteran of the U.S. Army during WWII and served in the European-African Theater. He was also a member of Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Joseph.
Survivors include three daughters, Mrs. Merye (Richard) Wine of Cheboygan, Mich., Mrs. Karen (Thomas) Mix of St. Joseph and Dorothy Gersonde of Stevensville; two brothers, William Gieszer of Okemos, Mich., and Wilbur Gieszer of Bangor, Mich.; one sister, Mrs. Margaret (Dale) Robbins of Bloomingdale, Mich.; nine grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and three great-great-grandchildren.
Mr. Gieszer was also preceded in death by one brother, Carl Gieszer.
Danielle Marie Quinn
DOWAGIAC -- Danielle Marie Quinn, 10, of Dowagiac passed on Feb. 13, 2004, at Borgess Lee Memorial Hospital in Dowagiac.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21, with visitation from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Mitchell Funeral Home, Hwy. 412 W. in Paragould, Ark., with Pastor Hayes officiating. Burial will follow in Hartsoe Cemetery in Marmaduke, Ark.
Friends may call from 3 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, at McLauchlin-Clark Funeral Home, 405 Center St. in Dowagiac. There will be a prayer service at 7 p.m. at the funeral home with Pastor James Wade officiating. Memorials may be made to the family.
Danielle Marie Quinn was born on March 18, 1993, in St. Joseph. She was in the fifth grade at Patrick Hamilton Middle School in Dowagiac. She played basketball at her school and also sang in the school choir. She also enjoyed drawing.
Danielle is survived by her parents, Steve and Pamela (Langston) Quinn; two brothers -- Dawayne and Steven Quinn; and one sister, Jamie Quinn, all of Dowagiac; her grandparents, Chuck and Mary Rowlee, Leroy and Debbie Quinn, and Charles and Alice Moshier; her grandfather, Lester Langston; her great-grandmother, Dorothy Cowgill; and her great-grandfathers, Stanford Quinn and Lamay Mason. She is also survived by many aunts, uncles and cousins.
She was preceded in death by a grandmother, Wanda Langston, and a grandfather, Phillip Thompson.
Danielle will be missed and loved by all her family and friends.
Walter Elmer Emery
SOUTH HAVEN -- Walter Elmer Emery, 83, passed away at home Saturday, Jan. 31, 2004. He was known as "Buster" to family and close friends and lived most of his life in Hagar Township before moving to South Haven, and then to Luther, Mich., in 1991.
He was a devoted family man who lived as an example for his children of integrity and values. Friends and neighbors knew him as the man who was always willing to lend a hand where needed. When his children were young, teaching them a wide variety of skills was the focus of his life, from raising pigeons and rabbits, to learning basic car maintenance, to whipping up a batch of homemade fudge. Walter was a tirelessly inventive man, not just mechanically, but was also legendary for his storytelling. He worked as a machine operator for Advance Products, and then for Kelm Manufacturing where he retired in 1987.
He is survived by his wife, the former Charlotte Mayhorter, and his five children, Joyce Bouwknegt, Ruthann Henderson, Martin Emery, Mel Emery and Denise Tillman, as well as 13 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Caroline Louise, who died in 1989, just prior to their 50th wedding anniversary.
Following his wishes, there will be no funeral or visitation, and his remains have been donated to the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in support of their medical education program. Cremains will be returned after one year at which time both Walter and Louise's ashes will be interred at Watervliet Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the University of Michigan Anatomical Donations Program.
Hutchins Funeral Home, Watervliet, is assisting the family.
Harvey Hoyt Jr.
BENTON HARBOR -- Harvey Hoyt Jr., 59, of Benton Harbor, died Monday, Feb. 2, 2004, at South Haven Health Care Center.
Funeral arrangements are being handled by Fairplain Chapel, Florin Funeral Service, Benton Harbor. Cremation has taken place and no services are planned at this time. Memorials may be made to the family.
Harvey was born July 2, 1944, in Benton Harbor, to Harvey Sr. and Verdie (Morgan) Hoyt. He was employed as a television repairman and owned and operated H&R; TV in Watervliet for a number of years. After closing his business, he worked for several other repair shops in the area. Harvey was also a great C.B. enthusiast.
Mr. Hoyt is survived by his wife, Pamela (Drury) Hoyt of Benton Harbor, whom he married on May 5, 1989. He is also survived by his son, Walter Hoyt of Benton Harbor; his daughter, Tracy Evett of Hagar Shores; a sister, Nancy (Tom) McConnell of Keeler; and five grandchildren.
Gary Eugene Hill
SOUTH HAVEN -- Gary Eugene Hill, 75, of South Haven died Friday, Feb. 13, 2004, at South Haven Community Hospital.
He was born Nov. 9, 1928, in South Haven, to Harry Evert and Agnes Elisabeth (Strebeck) Hill. Gary worked for Horan Concrete for more than 20 years and Consumers Concrete in South Haven for 10 years.
He was preceded in death by his parents and a son-in-law, Butch Raven.
Mr. Hill is survived by his wife, Viola (Barringer) Hill of South Haven; one son, Gary (Kelly) Hill of Farmington Hills; four daughters -- Rose (Dale) Covey, Debra Raven, and Brenda Hill (Chuck Diemer) all of South Haven, Teresa (Phil II) Bierhalter of Hamilton, Mich.; grandchildren -- David Covey, Cheryl Covey, Chris Covey, Marcie Covey, Jessica Bierhalter, Elisabeth Bierhalter, Megan Bierhalter, and Gary Hill III; two great-grandchildren, Tre' and Tyce Covey; one brother, John Hill of Marietta, Ga.; four sisters -- Arlyne Moon of Benton Harbor, Lois Sellers of Douglas, Mich., Georgia Benson of Lawrence, Norma Hansen of Mount Pleasant, and Harriett Gumpert of New Richard, Mich.
A graveside service will take place Tuesday, Feb. 17 at 10 a.m. at Chambers Cemetery with the Rev. Harold Filbrandt officiating. Memorial contributions can be made to the family.
Arthur 'Art' D. Niffenegger Jr.
SOUTH HAVEN -- Arthur "Art" D. Niffenegger Jr., 69, of South Haven died Thursday, Feb. 12, 2004, at his home.
He was born Oct. 5, 1934, in South Haven to Arthur and Alvena Niffenegger. He was a 1953 graduate from South Haven High School and a 1957 graduate of Western Michigan University. Art married his high school sweetheart, Lila Brooks. His 33 year career with the Associates Commercial Corp. provided the opportunity for him and his family to live in several Michigan cities plus Fort Lauderdale (Miami), Fla., Birmingham, England, and Naperville, (Chicago) Ill. Returning back to his hometown, he and his wife, Lila (Lee), established A Country Place Bed and Breakfast and upon his retirement from Associates in 1989 joined his wife in running the B&B; for the next 13 years. Art had a wealth of knowledge of South Haven history as many of his ancestors settled in South Haven around the turn of the century establishing many businesses. Art was president of the Optimist Club of Lansing during the 1960s, deacon of Pilgrim Congregational Church in the 1960s in Lansing, president of Plantation Chapter AFS in the 1970s (Foreign Exchange Program), deacon of Plantation United Methodist Church in the 1970s, member and president of Lakeshore Convention and Visitors Bureau of South Haven in the 1980s, and friend of Hope Reformed Church. He loved golfing, fishing, and adored his four granddaughters.
He is preceded in death by his parents.
He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Lila "Lee" (Brooks) Niffenegger of South Haven; one daughter, Sheryle (Ken) Thomas of Potterville, Mich.; and one son, Mark (Barbara) Niffenegger of Opelika, Ala.; four granddaughters -- Jessica, Laurie, Beth, Lauren, and Amanda; two sisters, Jean (Eugene) Latchaw of Fennville, Mich. and Sue (David) McKay of South Haven.
Visitation will be Sunday, Feb. 15 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Filbrandt Family Funeral Home. Funeral services will be Monday at 2 p.m. at the funeral home with the Rev. Gene A. Pole officiating. Burial will take place in Lakeview Cemetery. Memorial contributions can be made to Hospice of Holland, South Haven Area Hospice or We Care Inc., Heat Fund.
