August 13, 1923 - June 1, 2020 A memorial service will be scheduled in the fall and cards may be sent via her daughter, Cara Harder, 301 Glazier, Chelsea, MI 48118. Lois would have wanted donations in her name to be made to the American Red Cross, in care of the funeral home. |
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Lois Maybell Whitmore passed away from natural causes on June 1, 2020. Lois was born Lois Smith in Battle Creek, Michigan, on August 13, 1923, the second of seven children. Her first years were in a house with no electricity or indoor plumbing. Her family moved to Parchment, Michigan where she grew up. She met Albert Whitmore and married him in 1944, and they worked each other through college. Lois and Al lived in Battle Creek, moved to Sturgis, and then to Portage, during which time they raised a family, and then moved to Cooper, Michigan. Lois spent much of her life involved in education, starting as a public school teacher, then as a Red Cross instructor and employee. She and Al were on the Red Cross’s Disaster Response Team, and they went on relief efforts along the Atlantic coast and Puerto Rico. Lois and Al were very active in the United States Sail and Power Squadron; a boating group. They both were instructors, and Lois took a turn as the Squadron Commander, or leader of the Kalamazoo chapter, finally earning a Lifetime membership for her years of service. Lois and Al shared an adventurous spirit. Travel and boating were a big part of both of their lives. They took their kids all over North America. Their biggest boating adventure was buying a sailboat in Norfolk, Virginia in the spring of 1973, sailing it up the Atlantic, through the Erie Canal, through the Great Lakes to Isle Royal and then to Holland, Michigan. They traveled extensively, visiting all fifty states, and toured through Europe. Her last travel was to Idaho at age 94 to see the solar eclipse. Lois possessed a feisty “can do” attitude and an eclectic curiosity. She was a passionate collector; especially with rocks. Al passed away in 1996 and Lois stayed in their house in Cooper. Al and Lois had four children, two grandchildren and three great-grandsons. |