Thelma L. DeForest
October 30,1914-July 13, 1995

Services for Thelma L. DeForest, 80, of Berrien Springs, formerly of 141 Owens St., Niles, who died at 7:55 a.m. Thursday, July 13, 1995, in Pawating Hospital, will be at 11 a.m. Monday in Halbritter Funeral Home. Burial will be in Silverbrook Cemetery. Friends may call from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday in the funeral home.

Mrs. DeForest was employed at State Line Dairy for 25 years and had been a cook at Bertrand and Brandywine schools. She was born Oct. 30, 1914, in Plymouth and had lived in Niles since 1941, coming from South Bend. On Oct. 29, 1932, in South Bend, she married Garold O. DeForest. He died July 6, 1966. Surviving are two daughters, Sharon Holmes of Berrien Springs, with whom she resided, and Jackie Hess of Niles; twin sons, Richard L. and Thomas O., both of Niles; 10 grandchildren; and 17 great-grandchildren.

Submitted by family member; publication details unknown

Anthony Roy DeForest
July 20, 2003

Anthony Roy DeForest, son of Melanie Ferriby and Thomas O. DeForest III of 214 1/2 S. Lincoln Ave., was dead at birth Sunday July 20, 2003, in Lakeland Medical Center. Private graveside services will be held at Silverbrook Cemetery. There will be no visitation. Halbritter Funeral Home is handling arrangements.

Submitted by family member; publication details unknown

Mark L. Deditch
February 8, 1952-January 26, 2005

Mark L. Deditch, 52, of Gene's Circle, Niles, Michigan, died suddenly at 4 p.m. Wednesday Jan. 26, 2005, in his home of natural causes.

Mr. Deditch was born February 8, 1952, in Crestline, Ohio, to Dale L. and Vera L (Asmus) Deditch Sr. He moved to Niles soon after birth and remained a resident of Niles.

Mark was employed for 28 years at R & M Manufacturing in Niles, Michigan.

Mark loved northern Michigan, and enjoyed vacationing in the Mackinac area.

He is survived by his father, Dale L. Deditch Sr. of Carp Lake, Michigan; brother, Dale (Mary) Deditch Jr. of Niles; and niece, Nichole (Andrew) Dohm of Edwardsburg, Michigan.

Mark was preceded in death by his mother, Vera L. Deditch, who died in 1995; and nephew, Jonathan Deditch, who died in 1994.

Funeral services will be at Halbritter Funeral Home, Niles at 11 a.m. Monday, January 31, 2005, with the Rev. Dr. Ronald H. Wakeman of First Presbyterian Church officiating. Burial will follow at Silverbrook Cemetery, Niles. Friends may call one hour prior to the funeral services at the funeral home.

Memorials may be made to Hospice of Cass County, 321 1/2 West Delaware Street, Decatur, MI 49045-1106.

Submitted by family member; publication details unknown

Dale L. Deditch
July 20, 1920-April 23, 2006

Dale L. Deditch, 85, of Gene's Circle, Niles, Michigan, and Paradise Trails, Carp Lake, Michigan, died at 9:25 p.m. Sunday, April 23, 2006, in Hospice of the Straits, Cheboygan, Michigan, due to a brief illness.

Mr. Deditch was born on July 20, 1920, in Flint, Michigan, the son of Henry and Claudine (Home) Deditch. A builder with his father, Henry, Dale also was one of the original agents with Wolverine Insurance Company of Dowagiac. For 30 years he served the Niles Community as a realtor in the Deditch Real Estate Company. In 1974 he moved to Carp Lake.

Following his 1939 graduation from Niles High School, Mr. Deditch attained the rank of master sergeant in the U.S. Army Air Corps. During W.W.II, he was stationed in Manchester, England, as a radio operator, airielo with the Fifth Transport and 10th Air Deposit Squadrons. After 11 years of dedicated service, Dale retired from the military in 1952.

Active in the Barron Lake and Howard Township areas, Mr. Deditch was one of the founding trustees of what is now the governing body of Howard Township. For 30 years, he was a member of the National Association of Realtors.  In addition to his memberships with the Veterans of Foreign Wars of Mackinac, he also was a member of the Church of the Straits as well as the First Presbyterian Church of Niles.

On February 7, 1942, in Niles, Dale married Vera L. (Asmus) Deditch, who died August 30, 1995.  Also preceding him in death were his son, Mark L., who died January 26, 2005, and a grandson, Jonathon, who died November 15, 1994.

Surviving family include a son, Dale L. (Mary) Deditch of Niles, Michigan; one granddaughter, Nichole (Andrew) Dohm of Edwardsburg, Michigan; and a great-grandson, Andrew J. Dohm. Mr. Deditch's sister, Micky Fjetland of Norcross, Georgia, and a niece and friend, Lynn (Charles) Kruhlik of Wolverine, Michigan, also survive.

Funeral services for Dale L. Deditch will be at 11 a.m. Thursday, April 27, 2006, in the First Presbyterian Church in Niles, with the Rev. Dr. Ronald Wakeman officiating. Following a military flag presentation by American Legion Post #26, burial will be at Silverbrook Cemetery. The family will receive friends in the Halbritter Funeral Home today from 5 to 7 p.m.

Contributions in memory of Mr. Deditch may be made to either Hospice of the Straits, 722 South Street, Cheboygan, MI 49721; or to the Howard Township Fire Department, 2681 E. Detroit Road, Niles, MI 49120.

Submitted by family member; publication details unknown

Eugene H. Dayhuff
Sept. 10, 1916-June 10, 1998

Eugene H. Dayhuff, 81, of Tucson, Ariz., formerly of Niles, died Wednesday June 10, 1998, in St. Mary’s Hospice, Tucson.  He was born Sept. 10, 1916. Survivors include his wife, Audrey D. (Cook); two sons, Robert H. of Tucson and William E. of Tempe, Ariz.; three sisters, Lola J. Forbes of Mattawan, Mich., Mildred M. Allen of Niles and Mary V. Carter of Yuma, Ariz.; and two brothers, George B. of Placentia, Calif., and Victor of Niles. Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday in Halbritter Funeral Home, where friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. Burial will be at Silverbrook cemetery.

Submitted by family member; publication details unknown

Jerry Day
Jan. 2, 1917-April 1, 1995

Gerald L. ''Jerry'' Day, 78, of 2832 S. Third St., died at 8 p.m. Saturday April 1, 1995, in St. Joseph's Medical Center, South Bend, after an illness. Mr. Day retired as a manager from Big C Lumber, Roseland, after 10 years and also was employed in the family's former business, Day's Lumber in Bertrand. He was born Jan. 2, 1917, in Peru, Ind., and lived in Niles most of his life. On Nov. 22, 1939, in Winamac, he married June E. Hendricks. She survives with a son, Dennis of Manhattan, Kan.; three grandchildren; a sister, Martha Robertson of Mishawaka; and a brother, William of Niles. Mr. Day was a Navy veteran of World War II. He was a member of Bertrand Bible Church.

Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in Halbritter Funeral Home. Burial will be in Silverbrook Cemetery. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. today in the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to the church.

Submitted by family member; publication details unknown