Lawrence Provancher
May 15, 1935 – October 24, 2022
A memorial mass will be held on Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Catherine of Siena Church, 1150 W. Centre St., Portage. The family will greet guests following the service. Memorial contributions may be made to the Kalamazoo County ID Program.
Obituary
Age 87, passed away early Monday morning, October 24, 2022. Larry was born in Kingsford, MI, on May 15, 1935, the son of Reuben Joseph and Frances (Martino) Provancher. Larry worked for 31 years as a teacher for the Portage Public Schools before retiring. He previously taught for schools in Otsego and Colombia, South America where he met his future wife. He was first elected to the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners in 1995 and served until 2002. He was then re-elected in 2014 and served until 2016. Larry also served on the Kalamazoo County Mental Health Board, the Parks and Recreation Board, and the Homeless Shelter Advisory Board. He was an activist, championing the rights of immigrants and the poor. In 2016, he came up with the idea for a county-wide ID program, and in 2017, the Kalamazoo County ID Program was created. Now, more than 5,000 residents have a Kalamazoo County ID, which is an officially recognized government ID.
A pioneer of youth soccer, Larry started the first soccer clinic sponsored by the Portage Parks and Recreation Department that developed into an organized team, the “PeeWee” Internationals. He then served on the first Executive Board of AYSO in the Kalamazoo/Portage area. Larry also generously donated his time to various international organizations, traveling to Guatemala with the International Links of Friendship, and to the sister Parishes of St. Catherine of Siena in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, and El Sitio, El Salvador.
On June 6, 1962, he married Aura Maria Bryan, who survives him. Besides his wife, Larry is survived by his children, Ines (Mike) Heinz, Mark Provancher, and Karen (Erik) Kostbade; grandchildren Sam (Kelianne) Heinz, Jared Heinz, Andrew (Isabelle) Provancher, Benjamin Provancher, Emily Kostbade, Henry Kostbade; two great-grandchildren Brezlin and Brynlee Provancher; brother John (Judy) Provancher; several nieces and nephews; and many, many friends. He was preceded in death by his parents; and sisters Joanne Vanderfin and Mary Smit.
He gave so much to his community. He will be missed. May he rest in peace.
Ouch! What a terrible loss to this community. They simply don’t make them like Larry Provancher anymore! Always a champion of social justice, always fighting the good fight for the little guy. Larry continually strived to stand up and do the right thing, consequences be damned. He was a shirt-off-his-back kind of guy, the type that made you feel honored and blessed just to have known him. His tireless work within the community will always be fondly remembered. My deepest condolences to Aura, Inez, Mark, Karen, and the rest of the Provancher clan, for your terrible loss. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let Perpetual Light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the Faithful Departed, through the Mercy of God, rest in peace.
Sending my deepest condolences to Aura and family. May he Rest In Peace. Diana Hernández
Larry, you were a good man and a wonderful teacher. I can still hear you; “True Story”!
My deepest sympathies to Aura and the kids. Lots of memories from old neighbors.
I remember Larry mostly from years of being fellow parishioners at Saint Catherine, but in the last five or so years my late wife Mary Anne became closer friends with Larry from their involvement with our sister parish in El Sitio. Mary Anne lovingly called Larry “Tortuga”, and thought he was a pretty cool dude.
My condolences to the family. Was a pleasure to know Larry and work alongside him in developing the Kalamazoo County ID. He will be missed. Continued prayers.
I remember attending North Junior High and he was my math teacher. He was a great teacher he had nicknames for my sister and me. He called me skippy due to the fact I skipped a lot of classes and he called my sister cow eyes due to the fact her eyes are very brown. I enjoyed tending his class.