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William C. Swiger Sr.
William C. Swiger Sr., 86, of Nashville, died Friday, Dec. 28, 2001 at Pennock Hospital in Hastings.
Mr. Swiger was born Feb. 18, 1915 in Lake Odessa, the son of Jay and Carrie (Spiecher) Swiger. He grew up in the Lake Odessa area, attending area schools and graduating from Lake Odessa High School in 1934. He married Margaret Hummel in 1938 and the couple lived in Nashville area for over 55 years. Mr. Swiger was employed as a machinist at E.W. Bliss Company for over 36 years, retiring in 1977 at the age of 62. He was an avid fisherman, and was known for his ability to “fix anything.”
He is survived by his wife, Margaret of Nashville; daughters, Janet (Cecil) Valdick and Joyce (Don) Hummel both of Vermontville; son, William (Helen) Swiger Jr. of Charlotte; brothers, Richard (Shirley) Swiger of Lowell; 10 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by a sister, Crystal Rogers.
Services were held Dec. 31 at Maple Valley Chapel, Nashville, with Rev. Jim Hynes officiating. Interment was at Lakeview Cemetery, Nashville. Memorial donations may be made to the Maple Valley Scholarship Fund.
Richard M. Taylor
Richard M. Taylor, 82, of Mulliken, died Wednesday evening, June 27, 2001 at a Charlotte hospital.
Mr. Taylor was born March 21, 1919 in Ionia, a son of Bert and Laura (Allen) Taylor. He was a well-known area carpenter/contractor.
He is survived by his son, William Taylor of Mulliken; two daughters, Beverly (John) Abbaduska of Marseilles, Ill., and Sandy (John) Munger of Clinton Township; eight grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren; two sisters, Mildred Towe of Charlotte and Marian Peabody of Arizona; one brother, Lehman Taylor of Arizona; and several nieces and nephews.
Services were held June 30 at Barker-Leik Funeral Home, Mulliken, with Pastor Don Woolum officiating. Interment was at Meadowbrook Cemetery, Mulliken. Pallbearers were Craig Taylor, Gordon Schray, Rob Piercefield, Scott Pettit, Marc Green and Brian Briggs.
Arrangements were by Barker-Leik Funeral Home, Mulliken.
Opal L. Tew
Opal L. Tew, 85, of Bellevue, died March 9, 2001 at home.
Mrs. Tew was born July 21, 1915 in Battle Creek, the daughter of William and Dessie (Knapp) Varin. She graduated from Battle Creek Central High School in 1935, and Kellogg Community College nursing program in 1963. She was employed by the Community Hospital as a nurse for 6 ½ years, retiring in Oct. 1980. She married Shirley Tew in Sept. 14, 1935; he died in 1993. She was a member of the Bellevue United Methodist Church, Martha Circle and the Bellevue Historical Society. She enjoyed gardening, collecting Beanie Babies, knitting and traveling.
She is survived by daughters, Ellen (William) Schottle of Newark, Ohio, and Sharon (Lee) Coltson of Bellevue; sons, Albert (Barbara) Tew of Midland, and James (Bertha) Tew of Hopkins; 12 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren; sister, Nancy Schumacher of Battle Creek; and several nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents; and brothers, William and Omar Varin.
Services were held March 13 at Bellevue United Methodist Church, with Pastor Mark Thompson officiating. Interment was at Riverside Cemetery, Bellevue.
Memorial contributions may be made to Good Samaritan Hospice Care, or Bellevue United Methodist.
Arrangements by Shaw Funeral Home, Lehman Chapel, Bellevue.
Albert E. Thomas
Albert “Al” Ernest Thomas, 79, died Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2001.
Mr. Thomas was born May 9, 1922 in Iron Mountain, the son of Thomas and Mary Rose (Mottard) Thomas, and had been a Charlotte resident since 1955, coming from Swartz Creek. He was a 1941 graduate of Lansing Central high School and served in the U.S. Navy from 1941 to 1945. Mr. Thomas retired from Grand Trunk Railroad in 1983 after 35 years of service. He started on the Railroad on the spare board and retired as the freight agent in Lansing. Upon retirement, he drove a bus for Eatran and was presently employed at Felpausch Express. Mr. Thomas loved all aspects of the railroad and spent hours creating a beautiful H-O gauge train board. He was a people person and delighted in telling stories to all who would listen, and giving them hard candy. He enjoyed woodworking and making items for his family. He married Helen Jean Lett on Dec. 22, 1942.
He is survived by his wife of almost 59 years, Helen Thomas; two children, Kathleen (Michael) Lincoln of Vernon and William (Barbara) Thomas of Ishpeming; four grandchildren, Peggy (Brian) Bauer, Beth (Andy) Reichert, and Holly and Eric Thomas; one great-grandson, Alex Bauer; two sisters, Mary Emma Smith of Colorado and RoseMarie (Dennis) McDonald of East Lansing.
He was preceded in death by a daughter, Lesley Thomas; grandson, Ricky Thomas; and brothers, Victor and Henry.
At Mr. Thomas’ request, cremation has taken place. A graveside memorial service was held Dec. 14 at Deepdale Memorial Park Chapel, Lansing, with Rev. William McBride officiating.
Memorial donations may be made to WKAR Radio Talking Book, 283 Communication Arts Bldg., MSU, East Lansing, MI 48824. Arrangements were by Burkhead-Green Funeral Home, Charlotte.
Gladys Thomas
Gladys (Halsey) Thomas, 89, died Dec. 24, 2000.
Mrs. Thomas was born in Eaton County, the daughter of Vera and Ira Halsey. She married Arthur Thomas, lived in the Charlotte area for many years, and was an active member of the Charlotte Adventist Church.
She is survived by four children, Janet (Gordon) Weidemann, Jim (Charlene) Thomas, Anita Ratliff, and Dennis Thomas; eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Memorial services will be held Saturday, April 21 at 2 p.m. ay Needmore Bible Church, located on West Needmore highway just off North Cochran. Mrs. Thomas’s children will be traveling to Michigan from North Carolina, Virginia and Florida and look forward to greeting friends, neighbors and relatives. Light refreshments will be served in the basement fellowship area of the church immediately following the service. Interment of cremains will be at Needmore Cemetery.
Clara M. Thrun
Clara M. Thrun, 89, of Pewamo, formerly of Vermontville, died Tuesday, July 10, 2001 at Ovid Healthcare Center.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Martin.
Respecting the family’s wishes, no services were held. Arrangements were by Maple Valley Chapel, Nashville.
Arnold W. Tiedgen
Arnold “Arnie” W. Tiedgen, age 64 of Dimondale, died August 24, 2001 in Lansing. He was a retired employee of the Department of Transportation, a member of the Eagles, Aerie No. 3552, and an avid sportsman. Mr. Tiedgen was preceded in death by his wife, JoAnn, in 1993.
Surviving are his daughter, Kelly M. Tiedgen (Phil Thayer) of Eaton Rapids; two step-daughters, Kathy (Mark) Haviland, Karen Spitler (Duane Smith) all of Lansing; his granddaughter, Shannon (Chuck) Spainhower; his great-granddaughter, Brenna; his sister, Fran (Gene) Flower of East Jordan; several nieces and nephews and a host of friends.
Services were held at the Field & Leik Funeral Home, Dimondale, with Rev. Joseph Spackman officiating. Interment was in Dimondale Cemetery. Eagle services were also held. Contributions may be made to Hospices of Lansing.
Dennis K. Todd
Dennis K. Todd, 47, of Nashville, died Tuesday, March 27, 2001 at Spectrum Downtown Hospital, Grand Rapids, as the result of a motorcycle accident.
Mr. Todd was born Jan. 26, 1954 in Hastings, the son of Wendell Todd and Susie Rathburn. He attended Maple Valley School. Mr. Todd served in the United States Army from 1971-1973. He was an avid Harley motorcycle rider, riding his Harley whenever possible. He loved being with his children and grandchildren. His employment included construction work, owning Deep Cleaning Services, and currently working for Team Industrial Services.
He is survived by his wife, Laura Todd of Hastings; daughters, Christina Todd of Hastings, Brandy Todd of Nashville; sons, Shayne Todd and Chase Todd, both of Nashville; four grandchildren, Tyler, Kennedy, Damon and Cathrine; father, Wendell (Barb) Todd of Hastings; mother, Susie Frank of Charlotte; stepdaughter, Angela McClarkin of Hastings; stepson, Joshua Armour of Hastings; brothers, Mike Todd of California, Rex Todd of Charlotte; sisters, Nancy (Jerry) Townsend and Carol (John) Steel, both of Texas, and Tammie (Ron) Royston of Charlotte; several stepbrothers and sisters, aunts, uncles and cousins; and special friends, Bob and Margaret Wellman of Hastings.
He was preceded in death by two brothers, Jay Todd and William Dale Frank.
Memorial services were held March 31 at Girrbach Funeral Home, Hastings, with Gary Newton officiating. Interment was at Woodlawn Cemetery, Vermontville.
Memorial contributions may be made to Dennis Todd’s children. Arrangements were by Girrbach Funeral Home, Hastings.
Emily E. Todd
Emily E. Todd, age 87 of Onondaga, died Tuesday, September 25, 2001 in Albion. Emily was born October 29, 1913 in Springport, the daughter of Emre and Rachel M. (Inman) Towns. She was a member of the Onondaga Community Church, a life member of both the Rebekah Sunshine Lodge #142 in Eaton Rapid and the Leslie/ Mason Order of the Eastern Star #150, and was a leader of the Onondaga Community Farmer 4-H Club for over 28 years. Mrs. Todd was preceded in death by her sister, Ruby Gamble.
Surviving are her husband of 42 years, Donald H.; son, Larry (Joan) Todd of Onondaga; 2 grandchildren, Seth and Tarah Todd.
Funeral services were held on Thursday, September 27, 2001 at the Shelly-Odell Funeral Home, Eaton Rapids with Rev. William Muller officiating. Interment followed at Tompkins Cemetery. Those desiring may make contributions to either the American Cancer Association or the Onondaga Community Church Building Fund in memory of Emily Todd.
