Lillian H. Holmer, of Dowagiac
April 17, 1927 — July 20, 2021
Niles Daily Star, Published online 5:18 pm Thursday, July 22, 2021
Lillian H. Holmer, 94, of Dowagiac, passed away on Tuesday, July 20, 2021, at Maple Lake Assisted Living in Paw Paw.
A celebration of life memorial service will be held on Monday, July 26, 2021, at 11:30 a.m., at Clark Chapel, 405 Center St., Dowagiac, with Pastor Roy Jeffery officiating. A private burial will be held at a later date at Silverbrook Cemetery in Niles. Memorial contributions may be made to Paws of Hope, pawsofhope.org/lend-a-paw, or to Plymouth Congregational Church, 123 1st St., Watervliet, MI, 49098. Those wishing to leave an online condolence may do so at www.clarkch.com.
Lillian was born on April 17, 1927, in Chicago, to Harvey & Emma (Optiz) Beck. In 1945, she attended Cook County School of Nursing and earned a diploma in nursing. She continued her education by earning a Minor in Business from Michigan State University and a Masters in Hospital Administration from Northwestern University. On Sept. 17, 1955, Lillian married the love of her life, Walter A. Holmer, Jr., in Watervliet. The two were happily married for 20 years before his passing in 1975. Lillian had a passion for helping people and knew nursing was a way to achieve that. She held various different positions while nursing such as being a director, a charge and float nurse, administrative resident and assistant, and nurse consultant until her retirement in 1989. Lillian also loved to travel the states with her family and friends visiting states such as Alaska, Colorado, Washington and more. She would also travel to various different bowl games to cheer on her Michigan State Spartans. While living on the lake, Lillian enjoyed hosting events for friends and family and taking full advantage of what mother nature had to offer. Other hobbies of hers were golfing, bowling and square dancing.
Lillian is survived by her son, Paul Holmer, of Dowagiac, and her dear friend, John (Colleen) Nametz. She was preceded in death by her parents, Harvey & Emma, and husband, Walter.
