George S. Burgard
Age 85 of St. Louis, Michigan died Tuesday, April 2, 2002 at Wilcox Health Center in Alma, Michigan. He worked for the Catalytic Engineering Co. installing new equipment at Leonard Refinery in Alma. He was later employed by GM Grey Iron Foundry in Saginaw for 36 years, retiring in 1979.
Funeral services will be held Friday, April 5, 2002 at 11:00 A.m. at Smith Family Funeral Homes, Alward-Carter Chapel, St. Louis. Rev. H.E. Speers will officiate with burial at Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Louis, Michigan. Visitation will be Thursday from 4-8 P.m.
George was born on May 29, 1916 in Ashtabula, Ohio, the son of Sam W. and Mary (Oliver) Burgard. He attended Ashtabula Harbor High in Ohio, graduating with the Class of 1934. On July 18, 1945 he married Mary Louise DeCamp in Alma, Michigan. She passed away September 14, 1995. He was in the Army Air Corp. and was stationed in Sudbury, England. He flew 36 missions over Germany in the B-17’s. He also received the Purple Heart. He was a life member of the St. Louis VFW Post, 32nd Degree Mason, and also a life member of the Moose Lodge in St. Louis. He resided most of his life in the St. Louis area.
He is survived by 3 children, Lorna Burgard of Ionia, Keith & Teresa Burgard of Ashtabula, Ohio, Jane Visnosky of Jefferson, Ohio, 1 step-son, Ralph "Skip" & Ardeth Marsh of St. Louis, 10 grandchildren, 26 great grandchildren, 4 great great-grandchildren, 1 sister, Anna Mae Thornton of Ashtabula, Ohio and 1 sister-in-law, Dorothy Jones of Alma. He was preceded in death by his wife, 1 grandson, Kimmy, 4 brothers and 3 sisters.
Memorials may be made to the St. Louis VFW Post. The family is being served by Smith Family Funeral Homes, St. Louis Chapel.
Mary A. Spaleny
Age 83 of Corunna, Michigan died Tuesday, April 2, 2002 at her brother Fred’s home in Corunna. She was an inspector for a small motor company.
Funeral services will be held Friday, April 5, 2002 at 1:00 P.m. at Smith Family Funeral Homes, Corunna Chapel. Pastor John Walworth will officiate with burial at Oak Hill Cemetery, Owosso, Michigan. Visitation will be Wednesday from 5-8 and Thursday from 2-8 P.m.
Mary was born on February 11, 1919 in Owosso, Michigan, the daughter of Frank and Antoine (Nechvil) Spaleny. She attended Eveleth School in Corunna. She resided most of her life in the Owosso and Corunna area.
She is survived by 2 brothers, Jerry (Theresa) Spaleny of Owosso, and Fred (Ann) Spaleny of Corunna, 1 sister, Lillian (Martin) Holuvik of Florida, also many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, 1 brother, Frank Spaleny, and 1 sister, Margie McCulland.
Memorials may be made to Hospice of Owosso. The family is being served by Smith Family Funeral Homes, Corunna Chapel.
Charles Wallace Hill (Wally)
Age 72, beloved father, went to be with his Maker on April 1, 2002, when he went to sleep peacefully in his chair with his puppy on his lap. He was born July 9, 1929, in Porter Township, Midland County, the only son of three children born to Arthur and Nellie Hill.
He is survived by three daughters, Nancy (Michael) Parsons of Oil City, MI, Patricia Fellows and Joe Terry of Oil City, and Carolyn (Daniel) Komperda of Fostoria, MI as well as his beloved twin sister, Margaret Wayer of Porter, MI. Wally felt very blessed to have 16 grandchildren, 30 great-grandchildren and 1 great-great granddaughter to share his life. He also had 2 nieces and 2 nephews, as well as 10 great-nieces and nephews. Add to that a wonderful little dog named Missie, and he was a very happy man.
Wallace married Lula Bell Barnes on September 16, 1963, in North Star, Michigan. They were married for 26 years. He was preceded in death by his wife on September 1, 1990, his son Charles E. Barnes, his parents, Art and Nellie Hill, his older sister, Mildred Hill, a brother-in-law. Bernard Wayer, son-in-law, Victor Fellows, and two infant great-grandchildren, as well as two of his best friends Raymond Fenby and Bob Brady.
Wally was an avid coon hunter and trapper in his youth. He enjoyed the outdoors and cut and sold firewood for years. He was a sawyer-cutting his own lumber to have boards cut for his own use, and the use of others as well. He truly enjoyed deer hunting and always welcomed family and friends to hunt on his property, even after his hunting days became a time of watching the deer graze in his woods. Having a hearing impairment, Wally developed many extra sensory skills, and read lips, listening with his eyes and was always ready for a good joke, a game of Euchre, and times with the family and many friends that he loved and enjoyed so much.
Favorite lifelong pastimes were coin, stamp, and gun collecting, as well as searching the local Pleasant Valley area and farmlands where he lived all of his life for Indian Artifacts. He collected arrowheads, knives, hunting axes, tomahawks and even sifted and pieced Indian pottery together. He donated a large collection of fluted arrowheads to Midland County’s Chippewa Nature Center, which is a museum that preserves the heritage of our great state.
Wally was a mason for years and then raised fruits, vegetables and flowers to take to the Midland farm market, with his sister. He was never happier than when he was sitting outdoors with his family by a bon-fire, or farming on his old John Deere tractor.
Funeral services will be held Thursday April 4, 2002 at 1:00 P.m. at Smith Family Funeral Homes, Alward-Carter Chapel, St. Louis. Rev. Bedsaul Agee will officiate with burial at Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Louis, Michigan. A funeral dinner following the burial services will take place at the First United Methodist Church in St. Louis. Visitation will be Tuesday evening from 7-9 and Wednesday 2-4 & 7-9 and Thursday 10 A.m. to 12 P.m.
Memorials may be made in Wally’s memory to Chippewa Nature Center. The family is being served by Smith Family Funeral Homes, St. Louis Chapel.
