Ina Edith Bookwalter (Higbee)
March 20, 1887-Oct. 8, 1936

Niles Daily Star, Friday, October 9, 1936, page 1, col. 7, microfilm Niles District Library

Mrs. C.W. Bookwalter Of Bertrand, Succumbs

Mrs. C.W. Bookwalter, 49, died at 5:17 o'clock Thursday afternoon at her home in Bertrand where she had been ill for the past nine weeks.

Born March 20, 1887, she was married to C.W. Bookwalter, April 27, 1910.  Beside her husband, she is survived by one son, James, and her mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Higbee.

Prayer service will be held at 2 o'clock Monday afternoon at the home followed by funeral services at 2:30 o'clock in Trinity Episcopal church with the Rev. H.L. Nicholson officiating.

Burial will be in Silverbrook cemetery.

Niles Daily Star, Saturday, October 10, 1936, page 2, col. 1, microfilm Niles District Library

Niles News In Brief:  BOOKWALTER RITES MONDAY

Funeral services for Mrs. C.W. Bookwalter, 49, who died at her home in Bertrand late Thursday afternoon, will be conducted at 2:30 o'clock Monday afternoon in the Trinity Episcopal church by the Rev. H.L. Nicholson. A prayer service will be held at the home at 2 o'clock. Archie Morley, Buchanan; John Summe, Mishawaka; Robert E. Malone and Willard Schroeder, Jr., both of Bertrand; T. Bowyer Campbell, Notre Dame, and Richard Morris, Niles, will act as pallbearers.  Burial will be in Silverbrook cemetery.

Niles Daily Star, Monday, October 12, 1936, page 2, col. 2, microfilm Niles District Library

Niles News In Brief:  BOOKWALTER RITES MONDAY

Final rites for Mrs. C.W. Bookwalter were conducted this afternoon at the home in Bertrand, where she died Thursday and at Trinity Episcopal church here.  The Rev. Harry L. Nicholson conducted the services, followed by burial in Silverbrook cemetery.  Floyd Sellenberg, South Bend; John Summe, Mishawaka; Robert Malone and Williard Schroeder, Jr., Bertrand; Archie Morley, Buchanan; and T. Bowyer Campbell, Notre Dame, serviced as pallbearers.

William V. Burch
March 9, 1880-Oct. 21, 1936

Niles Daily Star, Wednesday, October 21, 1936, page 1, col. 4, microfilm Niles District Library

William V. Burch, 56, Dies After Long Period of Illness

William V. Burch, 56, died at 1:12 o'clock this morning at his home on Clark street where he had been ill for the past several months.

Born in Brunersburg, O., March 9, 1880, Mr. Burch came to Niles about 10 years ago. He was employed at the Simplicity Pattern company until ill health forced him to give up his work.  

He is survived by his wife, Mary, and one brother, James, Rockford, Ill.; also a niece, Frances Hayden, and a nephew, Claude Bisby, both of Niles.  Another niece, Ivy Eklund, resides in Rockford.

Funeral services will be conducted at 2 o'clock Friday afternoon at the Turner & Pifer chapel by the Rev. Theo Eisen. Burial will be in Silverbrook cemetery. Friends may call at the funeral home.

Niles Daily Star, Friday, October 23, 1936, page 2, col. 1, microfilm Niles District Library

Niles News In Brief:  BURCH RITES HELD

Funeral services for William V. Burch, who died Wednesday morning were conducted at 2 o'clock this afternoon by the Rev. Theo Eisen at the Turner and Pifer funeral home. Burial was in Silverbrook cemetery.

Wanda Graham, of Niles
Aug. 19, 1925 — March 25, 2017

Niles Daily Star, Published 10:17 am Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Wanda L. (Woods) Graham, 91, passed away at 10:11 a.m. Saturday, March 25, 2017, at Lakeland Hospital in Niles.
Wanda was born Aug. 19, 1925, in Grayville, Illinois, to the late Orie and Hazel (Wilson) Woods.

Wanda Graham

Wanda was preceded in death by her first husband, Allan D. Witham, who passed away in 1977; her second husband, Ross W. Graham, who passed away in 2014; her son, David B. Witham, who passed away in 2015; and her brother, Jack Woods, who died in 2000.
Wanda is survived by her son, Richard A. (Kris) Witham, granddaughter Morgan Witham and daughter-in-law Rhonda Witham.
Wanda graduated from St. Mary’s Nursing School and worked as an RN and assistant director of nursing for many years. After she retired in 1973, she ran the Red Cross blood drives in Niles for several years, and once was named volunteer of the year. She was a member of Trinity Episcopal Church.
Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 29, 2017, at Halbritter-Wickens Funeral Home, 615 E. Main St., Niles. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday, March 30, 2017, at the funeral home, with the Rev. Barry Borst officiating. Burial will follow in Silverbrook Cemetery.
Condolences for the family may be made at halbritterfunerals.com.

Eleanor Virginia Van Dyke, of Niles
July 8, 1910 – March 24, 2017

Niles Daily Star, Published 8:32 am Monday, March 27, 2017

Eleanor Virginia (Martin) Van Dyke, 106, passed away on Friday, March 24, 2017 in her home.
Eleanor was born July 8, 1910 in Yukon, Pennsylvania to the late Thomas G. and Nellie M. (Bollinger) Martin. On July 8, 1941 in Sewickley Presbyterian Church, Yukon, Pennsylvania, Eleanor married Edwin Nelson Van Dyke, and he passed away on May 18, 1978.

Eleanor Virgin

She was the oldest of twelve children. She is survived by sisters, Matilda Marvin and Mary Jane Landis. She was preceded in death by siblings, Marie Leasure, Hazel Sterner, John Martin, Oliver Martin, Byron Martin, Ralph Martin, Fannie Hileman, Miriam Kropar, and Helen Dwyer.
Eleanor is survived by her children, Benton (Jacqueline) Van Dyke, Heather Pletcher, John Van Dyke, and Jenny Chapla. She is survived by grandchildren, Thomas VanDyke, Jonas Van Dyke, Elsa Hoon, Nora Pletcher, Molly Pletcher, Dr.David VanDyke, Daniel VanDyke, Jacob VanDyke, Erin Chapla, and Craig Chapla. She is survived by great-grandchildren, Samson Hoon, Kathlin Batson, Ella Batson, Mya Batson, Jacob VanDyke, Madelyn VanDyke, Eva Van Dyke, June Paavo, Ruth Paavo, and Malcolm Chapla.
Eleanor described her childhood as “rich” with the experience of growing up on her family’s farm. Life was filled with shared duties, church activities and school. She often expressed a reverence for rural life. She was a life-long learner and educator.
After graduating valedictorian of her high school class, she went to Park College in Parkville, Missouri. She was a teacher in Wyano and Yukon, Pennsylvania. She returned to McCormick Seminary in Chicago to earn her masters’ degree in Christian Education. She was the first woman in the Redstone Presbytery of Pennsylvania to be commissioned as a Christian Educator. She became director of Christian education at First Presbyterian Church in Niles.
She was an elementary teacher at Electric Light, Fairland and Eastside schools in Niles. Eleanor was involved in church work throughout her life. As a young girl she began helping her grandmother who established the Waltz’s Mill Sunday School and was still teaching adult Sunday school classes into her late 90s. Eleanor logged more than 10,000 volunteer hours leading programs in children’s literature, poetry and biblical literature at Berrien General Hospital and sewing thousands of lap robes for extended care patients.
Eleanor loved to read. She read the Bible, memorized poetry, studied genealogy and kept current with events. She played piano and loved classical music. Many happy hours were spent accompanying her father’s violin on piano. She enjoyed sewing, crocheting, gardening, nature and birds.
Funeral Services will be at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, March 29, 2017 in the First Presbyterian Church, 13 South Fourth Street, Niles, where family and friends may gather one hour prior. Burial will follow in Silverbrook Cemetery.
Memorial Contributions may be made to the First Presbyterian Church, 13 South Fourth Street Niles, MI 49120.
Condolences for the family may be made at hablritterfunerals.com.

Dale Wiars, of Niles
Sept. 27, 1933 — March 9, 2017

Niles Daily Star, Published 8:52 am Monday, March 13, 2017

Dale Wiars

Dale M. Wiars, 83, formerly of Niles, died peacefully at 4:10 p.m. Thursday, March 9, 2017, at his home in Three Rivers, following an extended illness.
He was born Sept. 27, 1933, in Niles, to Myrtis and Helen (Renz) Wiars. He graduated from Niles High School, earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University (Kalamazoo) and a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. His firm, Dale M. Wiars Architect and Facility Planner, designed schools, college facilities and other public buildings.
Dale was a member of Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan and of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Three Rivers. His devotion to the Catholic church led him to spend his retirement learning more about it. He also found comfort and retreat at the Holy Love Ecumenical Ministry and Shrine in North Ridgeville, Ohio. He enjoyed walking, and reading a great variety of subjects, usually with a cup of coffee. His greatest joy was caring for his family, especially his grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents. He was and was previously married to Carolyn L. Gardner.
Surviving family includes his children, Mark (Pamela Sweet) Wiars of Boise, Idaho, Eric (Leanne) Wiars of New Hartford, New York, and Anna (John) Mabry of Lincoln, Nebraska; and grandchildren Samantha Wiars, Caitlin Wiars, Ian Wiars, Jeffrey Briere and Ashley Briere.
Committal rites for Dale Wiars will be read at 2 p.m. Monday, March 13, 2017, at his graveside in Silverbrook Cemetery in Niles by the Rev. Donald G. Potts, pastor emeritus of Saint Ann Catholic Church in Cassopolis.
Contributions in memory of Dale Wiars may be made to the Holy Love Ministries, 37137 Butternut Ridge Road, North Ridgeville, OH 44039.
Arrangements were made at Halbritter-Wickens Funeral Service in Niles.
halbritterfunerals.com

Jeanne Hipshear, of Niles
May 20, 1926 — March 10, 2017

Niles Daily Star Published 8:37 am Monday, March 13, 2017

Jeanne Edna (née Clay) Hipshear, 90, of Holland, Michigan, and formerly of Niles and Detroit, died peacefully in her sleep, following a short illness, on Friday, March 10, 2017, at Vista Springs Holland Meadows in Holland.
Born May 20, 1926, in Detroit, she was predeceased by her parents, Kate and Clarence Clay, brothers William and Junior Clay, sister Margerie Clay Owen and her husband of 63 years, Harold “Huck” Hipshear.

Jeanne Hipshear

Jeanne was a secretary during her high school years in Detroit. She married and moved to Niles, where she was a homemaker, involved in 4-H activities with her children and volunteered at what was then Pawating Hospital. She held the hearts of many children and was influential in their lives. She was known for her kindness and was always ready with a cup of tea and a listening ear for whoever walked in her door.
Jeanne’s special gift was her beautiful singing voice. She would spread music wherever she went. She often sang at St. John’s Church, where she was a member. Jeanne also directed the chapel choir there for many years. She was a true believer and worked in her church and women’s organization.
Survivors include her sister, Betty Clay-Coon of Franklin, Tennessee, and her children, Diane (Daniel) Jackson of Bristow, Virginia, Mark and Linda Hipshear of Elkhart, Indiana, Fred and Janie Hipshear of Dowagiac, and Marcia and Edward Wirth of Zeeland, Michigan. Her many grandchildren and great-grandchildren include Christopher and Amanda Wirth (Noah Wirth) of Hudsonville, Michigan, Rick and Krista Rivera (Preston Rivera) of Indianapolis, Alec Hipshear and Katelyn Dinkgrave of South Bend, Indiana, Nora and Brett Mason (Merrick Mason) of Colchester, Vermont, Lauren Hipshear of Elkhart, Brooke and Dustin Calhoun (Caroline and Carson Calhoun) of Noblesville, Indiana, JR Joers of South Bend, Adam and Desi Jackson (Blakely and Cameron Jackson) of Tom’s River, New Jersey, Allyson and Paige Hanger (Finnegan and Sullivan) of San Antonio, Texas, and Ashlee Jackson of Washington, D.C. Jeanne was also blessed by many nieces and nephews whose lives were touched by her love.
Visitation was from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, March 12, 2017, at Halbritter Wickens Funeral Home in Niles, and a funeral service will be at 11 a.m. Monday, March 13, 2017, at St. John’s United Church of Christ in Niles, with burial immediately following in Silverbrook Cemetery. A luncheon will follow in the fellowship hall of St. John’s Church.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. John’s Church, 601 Sycamore St., Niles, MI 49120, and Holland Hospice, 270 Hoover Blvd., Holland, MI 49423.
The family wishes to extend thanks for the support felt by family and friends as well as the staff at Vista Springs during their mother’s illness.
Condolences for the family may be made at halbritterfunerals.com.