HURON DAILY TRIBUNE, Bad Axe, Huron County, Michigan Local obituaries for the week beginning September 17, 2006 Contributed 2006 by Carol Morrison for use in the USGenWeb Archives. USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal represent- ative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. Sunday, September 17, 2006 Nancy Jean Evans Nancy Jean Evans, 57, of Caseville, died Friday, September 15, 2006, at Scheurer Hospital in Pigeon after a courageous battle with cancer. Nancy was born August 9, 1949 in Detroit to the late Lawrence and Iris (Plassey) Springett. She graduated from Rochester High School in 1967 and moved to Caseville in 1969. She was a member of the Caseville Eagles' Auxiliary No. 3690 and had worked for many years at Dufty's Blue Water Inn as a bartender. She is survived by her children, Roger, of Rochester, Ricky, of Elkton, Zandra "Sis", of Waterford, and Evan Kubont, of Elkton; six grandchildren; six great grandchildren; her brother, Thomas (Bobbie) Springett, of Sterling Heights; and her lifelong friend, Cliff Kubont, of Caseville. She was preceded in death by her husband, Garry Evans, in 1986. A funeral service will be at 11 a.m. on Monday, September 18, 2006, at the Champagne Funeral Chapel of Caseville with Chaplin Karen Bouverette, of Heartland Hospice, officiating. Visitation will be from 2 to 7 p.m. on Sunday. There will be an Eagles' Ritual at 7 p.m. on Sunday. Memorials may be made to the Caseville Eagles' John McDonald Scholarship Fund. Condolences may be shared at www.cfcCaseville.com. Monday, September 18, 2006 – No obituaries reported Tuesday, September 19, 2006 Frank A. Taschner Frank A. Taschner, 60, of Traverse City, died unexpectedly early Monday morning, September 18, 2006, at Munson Medical Center in Traverse City. He was born December 11, 1945 in Pigeon, son of Sally Ezar (Jones) Taschner and the late Frank A. Taschner. He was a 1964 graduate of Sebewaing High School and continued his studies, earning a degree in engineering. He served our country as a member of the U.S. Army for a two-year commitment based in Europe. He was united in marriage to Lucy Gonzag at St. Francis Catholic Church in Traverse City on October 12, 1996. Frank was employed by Verstand Engineering, Inc. in Traverse City. He was a member of St. Francis Catholic Church. He enjoyed bowling on leagues at Timberlane and was an avid music lover. He also enjoyed fishing and hunting small game but thoroughly enjoyed working in his yard. Surviving are his wife, Lucy, of Traverse City; daughter, Jolene Taschner, of Chicago; mother, Sally Taschner, of Sebewaing; brothers, John (Peggy) Taschner, of Sebewaing, Donald (Michelle) Taschner, of Madison, Alabama, Robert (Mary) Taschner, of Prince George, British Columbia; sisters, Nancy Shuette, of Pigeon, Pearl Fitzpatrick, of Junction City, Kansas, Julia (Edward) Crawford, of Jacksonville, Florida; brother-in-law, Pete Merchberger, of Barbeau; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by one sister, Maebelle Merchberger, and one brother-in-law, Elmer Shuette. Mass of Christian Burial will take place at noon on Wednesday, September 20, 2006, at St. Francis Catholic Church in Traverse City. Fr. Bill Lipscomb will officiate. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. today at Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home in Traverse City. There will be another visitation from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday with a scripture service to follow, led by Fr. John Weis, at the Dinkel-Juengel Funeral Home in Sebewaing. There will be a committal service at 11 a.m. on Friday at Holy Family Catholic Cemetery in Sebewaing. Memorials may be made to the American Heart Association. Donald Zurek Mr. Donald Zurek, 70, of Ubly, passed away suddenly Sunday morning, September 17, 2006, at Huron Medical Center. Donald was born August 5, 1936 in Ubly to the late Peter and Selma (Wrubel) Zurek. He married Mary Jane Peca on June 7, 1958 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Parisville. He was a 1955 graduate of Ubly High School where he excelled in football, basketball and baseball. He worked for Michigan Bell Telephone Company as a cable splicer and engineering supervisor for 32 years before retiring in 1989. He was a parishioner at St. John Catholic Church in Ubly. He was an avid golfer and longtime member of Verona Hills Golf Club. He was also a member of the Ubly Fox Hunters Club. Don is survived by his wife, Mary Jane, of Ubly; three children, D. Mark Zurek and his wife, Mary Ann, of Troy, Wayne Zurek and his wife, Janet, of San Antonio, Texas, Tami Schumacher and her husband, Darren, of Battle Creek; seven grandchildren, Emily, Dan, and Sean Zurek, Kody Zurek, Kourtney Morrison, Alex and Tori Schumacher; one great granddaughter, Acacia Morrison; one sister, Eleanor Ulfig and her husband, Eugene, of Dearborn Heights; one brother, Vern Zurek and his wife, Kaye, of Caro; three sisters-in-law, Carol Kaufman and her husband, Gerald, Adele Zurek and Anna Mae Angonese. He was preceded in death by two brothers, Peter F. and Gerald Zurek. A Funeral Mass will be at 11 a.m. on Thursday, September 21, 2006, at St. John's Catholic Church in Ubly. The Rev. Joseph Griffin, pastor, will officiate. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. today, from 2 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, and from 9 to 10 a.m. on Thursday at Zinger-Smigielski Funeral Home in Ubly. There will be a parish vigil service at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the funeral home. Wednesday, September 20, 2006 James E. "Joe" Harris James E. "Joe" Harris, 65, passed away suddenly on Monday, September 18, 2006. He was born March 24, 1941 in Verona, son of the late David "Fred" Harris and Edythe Mae (Mattice) Harris. He served his country for 30 years retiring as a Sargeant Major in the U.S. Army. He is survived by his saddened family, wife, Karin L. Harris, of Killeen, Texas; daughters, Susanne E. Harris-Spicer, of Perrinton, Patsy A. Fisher, of Temple, Texas; son, James J. Harris, of Killeen, Texas; sons-in-law, Jeffery L. Spicer and David Fisher; grandchildren, Amber Seleste Harris, David James Fisher and Karina Lilly Fisher; sisters, Lucille Anderson and Gloria Cook, both of Michigan; brothers, Willett Harris, Charles Harris, Robert Harris, Leonard Harris and Fred Harris, all of Michigan. He touched the heart of every person he knew and he will be sorely missed by all. A memorial service will be conducted at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 23, 2006, at the Heritage Funeral Home, 425 E. Central Texas Expressway, Harker Heights, Texas 76548. Visitation is from 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday at the funeral home. For those who cannot attend, James has an online memorial at www.killeenfunerals.com. Thursday, September 21, 2006 – No obituaries reported Friday, September 22, 2006 Raymond Leppek Raymond Leppek, 75, of Bad Axe, passed away Thursday, September 21, 2006, at Huron Medical Center near Bad Axe. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at this time and are being handled by MacAlpine Funeral Home in Bad Axe. A complete obituary will be in Sunday's edition of the Huron Daily Tribune. Barbara J. Roberts Barbara J. Roberts, 68, of Bad Axe, passed away Wednesday, September 20, 2006, in Huntersville, North Carolina. The funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, September 25, 2006, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Bad Axe. Visitation will be from 1 to 8 p.m. on Sunday at the Kaufman Funeral Home in Bad Axe or from 9:30 a.m. until the time of the service at 10:30 a.m. on Monday at the church. A scripture service will be offered at 7 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home. A complete obituary will be published in Sunday's edition of the Huron Daily Tribune. 1