Janet L. Ripper
Services for Janet Ripper, 67, of Farmington Hills (formerly of Livonia), were held Oct. 9 at the Thayer-Rock Funeral Home in Farmington with the Rev. Larry Austin officiating.
Mrs. Ripper was born Nov. 11, 1934 in Trenton, N.J. and died Oct. 5 in Farmington Hills. She is a graduate of Redford High School and Hillsdale College, earning a bachelor's degree. She and her husband, Jack, had been married for 42 years. She was half owner of Jack Ripper & Associates in Plymouth, North America's largest supplier of banners and pennants. She was secretary-treasurer and handled the business end while her husband did the production.
Survivors include husband, Jack; sons, John (Lesley) of Northville, David (Stacey) of Novi, and Dan of Novi; sisters, Elizabeth (Jim) Reynolds and Linda (John) Greig; and seven grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Karmanos Cancer Institute, Novi Region, 41935 W. 12 Mile, Novi, MI. 48377-9939.
Arrangements made by Thayer-Rock Funeral Home.
Lee F. Collins
Services for Lee Collins, 78, of Canton were held Oct. 11 at Vermeulen Funeral Home-Westland with the Rev. Jack Wallace officiating. Burial was at Cadillac Memorial Gardens, West.
Mr. Collins was born Nov. 19, 1923 in Detroit and died Oct. 8 in Canton. He was in Instrument Repair for Ford Motor Company.
Mr. Collins was preceded in death by parents; and two brothers.
Survivors include wife, Esther Collins of Canton; daughter, Bonnie (Paul) Pfeiffer of Livonia; son, Dean (Debbie) Collins of Phoenix, Ariz.; five grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.
Memorial contributions may be made to Visiting Nurses Association-Hospice.
Arrangements made by Vermeulen Funeral Home.
Harold W. Reeves
Services for Harold Reeves, 86, of Plymouth were held Oct. 14 at the Schrader-Howell Funeral Home with the Rev. Peter Berg officiating. Burial was at Glen Eden Cemetery in Livonia.
Mr. Reeves was born March 9, 1916 in Detroit and died Oct. 11 in Livonia. He was a retired custodian for the Plymouth/Canton school system. He came to the Plymouth community in 1949 from Farmington Hills. He was a member of St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church of Plymouth. He also was a member of the V.F.W. Post in Farmington Hills.
He and Beatrice had been married for 59 years. He liked fishing, golfing, and spending time at their cottage in Bellaire, Mich., on Intermediate Lake. He was a loving father, grandfather and brother.
Survivors include wife, Beatrice of Plymouth; children, Richard (Barbara) Reeves of Troy and Janis (Robert) Ducharme of Madison Heights; grandchildren, Michael Reeves of Troy, Melissa Reeves of Troy, Nolan (Lisa) Ducharme of Waterford, and Linseyok Ducharme of Grand Rapids; and sister, Gurneth Smith of Farmington Hills.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Plymouth.
Arrangements made by Schrader-Howell Funeral Home.
Jack Alan Fischer, Sr.
Services for Jack Fischer, 34, of Wixom were held Oct. 13 at Thayer-Rock Funeral Home in Farmington with the Rev. Thomas W. Anthony of the Society of St. James officiating.
Mr. Fischer was born Feb. 25, 1968 in Detroit and died Oct. 10 in Commerce Township. He worked in sales for Nextel for six years. He was a graduate of Farmington High School. He enjoyed bowling, hunting and golf.
Survivors include best friend and companion, Heather Secco; son, Jack Alan, Jr. "Jackson"; parents, Jack (Diane) Break of AuGres; grandmother, Alice Break; sister, Christine (Ron) Sullivan of Canton; and many aunts, uncles and cousins.
Memorial contributions may be made to Jack Fischer Jr.'s education fund.
Arrangements made by Thayer-Rock Funeral Home.
Angeline B. Madej
Services for Angeline Madej, 87, of Plymouth were held Oct. 12 at Vermeulen Funeral Home with the Rev. Doc Ortman officiating. Burial was at St. Hedwig Cemetery in Dearborn Heights.
Mrs. Madej was born March 5, 1915 in Detroit and died Oct. 10 in Plymouth. She was a homemaker. She lived in Plymouth for five years. She was a member of St. Cunegunda Volunteers for Cancer, Sacred Heart Society as president and Ladies Auxiliary. She was a long-time member of 40 years of St. Cunegunda in Detroit. She was very active in the Ladies Society. Hobbies included knitting, crocheting, and playing cards.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph L. Madej; son, Ronald Madej; sisters, Jane, and Eleanore; brothers, Frank, Barney, Stanley, Walter, and Joseph.
Survivors include daughter, Diane (Gary) Vanston of Plymouth; granddaughters, Michelle and Kelly; and grandson, Eric.
Arrangements made by Vermeulen Funeral Home.
George J. Masur
Services for George Masur, 80, of Westland were held Oct. 15 from St. Richard Church. Burial was at Cadillac Memorial West Cemetery.
Mr. Masur was born Jan. 20, 1922 in St. Louis, Mo., and died Oct. 12 at home. He worked as a switch man for the railroad.
Mr. Masur was preceded in death by his wife, Willie I. Masur; and son, Michael C. Masur.
Survivors include sons, Jay Baccus, Ronald J., and Joseph A.; daughter, Mary C. Roll; five grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
Share a memorial tribute with the family at griffinfuneralhome.com.
Arrangements made by L.J. Griffin Funeral Home Canton Chapel.
John M. Abraham
Services for John Abraham, 59, of Saline were held Oct. 16 from St. Andrews Catholic Church in Saline with the Rev. William Stevenson officiating.
Mr. Abraham was born May 5, 1943 in Cleveland, Ohio and died Oct. 13 at Arbor Hospice. He began his career working on the Gemini Space Program at McDonnell Douglas, St. Louis, Mo. In 1970 John graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a degree in industrial engineering. He retired from Ford Motor Company's New Model Program in 1999.
Survivors include wife, Barbara A. Abraham of Saline; sons, Gregory J. (Mary Ellen) of Farmington Hills, and Douglas R. (Kelly) of Commerce Township; daughters, Kimberly J. (David) Jameson of Memphis, Tenn.; and Cara L of Whitmore Lake; sister, Janice Vance of Mentor, Ohio; and grandchildren, Jessica, Emilee, Joseph and Kyle.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude's Hospital, Memphis, Tenn., or to Arbor Hospice. Share a memorial tribute with the family at griffinfuneralhome.com.
Arrangements made by L.J. Griffin Funeral Home Canton Chapel.
Larry Sheehan
Services for Larry Sheehan, 70, of Northville will be held Friday, Oct. 18 at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church in Northville. Burial will be in Rural Hill Cemetery in Northville.
Mr. Sheehan was born May 20, 1932 in Greenfield, Iowa and died Oct. 14 in Ann Arbor. He was a former executive vice president with Little Caesar's and vice president of marketing with Domino's Pizza. He owned and operated O'Sheehan's Restaurants, of which two were located in Northville and two in Florida. He also founded Mother's Pizza in Plymouth.
He was a retired Wayne County Jury Commissioner. He was the former owner of Sheehan's Hillside Lincoln Mercury in Pontiac. He was a member of the Monaghan Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Central High School Alumni Association.
Survivors include wife, Joan Sheehan of Northville; children, Timothy Sheehan of Livonia, Thomas (Julie) Sheehan of Northville, Susan (Ken) Meeks of Franklin, Tenn., Pati (Richard) Thornton of Bloomfield Hills, Terrence (Mary) Sheehan of Jacksonville, Fla. and Daniel (Tina) Sheehan of Northville; grandchildren, Errin, Megan, Donovan, Patrick and Kaeleigh Sheehan, Nathaniel and Jonathan Thornton, Sarah (Nathan) Partain, Jesse, Joel, Bethany and Abigail Meeks; sisters, Mary Barum of Northville and Joan (Joe) Hutton of Livonia; and nine nieces.
In lieu of flowers, contributions to the Larry Sheehan Scholarship Fund at Catholic Central High School would be appreciated.
Arrangements made by Northrop-Sassaman Funeral Home.
Matthew Glen Fortney
Services for Matthew Fortney, 79, will be held at 1 p.m., October 19 at the Stackus Funeral Home in Boyne City, Mich.
Mr. Fortney was born in 1923 in Fort Wayne, Ind., and died Oct. 11 in Boyne City. He served his country during World War II as part of the 634 Quartermaster Laundry Company known as the "Bubble Boys." He was stationed in Caerphilly, Wales in 1943 and 1944, when he and his group landed on Utah Beach and spent the next seven months in France then into Germany until June 1945. He arrived back in the States in December of 1945.
Matt was a longtime resident of Plymouth. He was partner and owner with Ed Wingard at Fisher-Wingard-Fortney Insurance Agency, founded by Helen's father, Roy A. Fisher. Matt was involved with the Jaycees, past president of the Optimist Club, Plymouth Elk's Club, Masons, Secretary of the Kiwanis Club, president of the PTA, Plymouth Theater Guild and was a member and past president of the Wayne County Insurance Association.
Matt and his wife, Helen, enjoyed 51 years of marriage that included many travels to Europe, including a return to Caerphilly, Wales where he served during WW II and a trip to Germany. In 1990 Matt and his wife moved to their current home off Lake Charlevoix in Eveline Township.
During his years of retirement, Matt enjoyed a great deal of hobbies, including model ship building, model trains, painting, gardening, woodwork and even tried his hand at building full size boats. He also enjoyed music from Big Band favorites of his younger years all the way to the Beatles and Pink Floyd. Matt will be dearly missed.
Matt was preceded in death by his son, Steven Michael Fortney in December 1993.
Survivors include wife, Helen; daughter, Barbara Ann Fortney; son, David Roy Fortney; and brother, Clifford Samuel (Lillian) Fortney of Sebring, Fla.
Arrangements made by Stackus Funeral Home.
Michael Paul Mallia
Services for Michael Mallia, seven months, of Canton Township will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 18 at St. Thomas a'Becket Church in Canton. Burial will be at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.
Michael was born Feb. 21, 2002 in Superior Township and died Oct. 14, 2002.
Survivors include parents, Paul (Paula) Mallia; sister, Brianna; grandparents, Fred (Ann Marie) Mallia; Stanley (Marcelline) Bronski; eight cousins, and several aunts and uncles.
Share a "Memorial Tribute" with the family at griffinfuneralhome.com.
Arrangements made by L.J. Griffin Funeral Home Canton Chapel.
James L. Pennebaker
Services for James Pennebaker, 83, of Plymouth were held Oct. 16 at the Church of the Divine Savior with the Rev. Alexander A. Kuras officiating. Burial was at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield.
Mr. Pennebaker was born March 6, 1919 in Detroit and died Oct. 14 in Plymouth. He was a tire builder for Uniroyal. He was a member of the Church of the Divine Savior. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II.
Survivors include wife, Josephine Pennbaker of Plymouth; sons, Thomas (Cathryn) Pennebaker of Plymouth and James (Connie) Pennebaker of Milford; daughter, Mary Ann (Don) Stuss of Milford; brother, Francis Pennebaker of Florida; sisters, Adelaide Galante of Trenton and Rosemary Koski of South Carolina; six grandchildren; and two great-granddaughters.
Arrangements made by Vermeulen Funeral Home.
Lonnie Brashear, Jr.
Former Livonia resident Lonnie Brashear, Jr., 54, of Tucson, Ariz., died Oct. 11, 2002.
Mr. Brashear was a graduate of Bentley High School.
Surviving are his children, Nicole Brashear of Tucson, Ariz., and Jason Brashear of Plymouth.
Mr. Brashear was preceded in death by his parents, Lonnie Brashear (a long-time Livonia School Board member) and Rosalie Brashear, both of Livonia.
Timothy M. Stapleton
Services for Timothy Stapleton, 42, of Canton Township, were held Oct. 19 at L.J. Griffin Funeral Home Canton Chapel.
Mr. Stapleton was born Aug. 21, 1960 in Detroit and died Oct. 15 in Jackson County. He was an iron worker for a construction company.
Survivors include son, Joshua; parents, Marilyn E. (Salvatore) Lomedico and Albert (Norma) Stapleton; sister, Carol (Howard) Stickel; nephew, G.J.; and niece, Samantha.
Arrangements made by L.J. Griffin Funeral Home Canton Chapel.
