Obituary: Patricia Elenor Lerche

As received from the Erickson Crowley Peterson Funeral Home:

PATRICIA ELENOR (KINSMAN) LERCHE, 80, A RESIDENT OF CALUMET PASSED AWAY PEACEFULLY ON MONDAY NOVEMBER 30, 2020 AT PORTAGE POINTE IN HANCOCK.

SHE WAS BORN ON MARCH 15, 1940 IN DETROIT TO ELIZABETH (ELWOOD) TAURIAINEN AND LORNE KINSMAN. SHE ATTENDED THE LOCAL SCHOOLS.

PAT MET HER FIRST HUSBAND, DONALD, WHILE HE WAS STATIONED AT CALUMET AIR FORCE BASE AND WAS FORTUNATE TO HAVE TRAVELED WHILE DON WAS ENLISTED, INCLUDING OVERSEAS IN SPAIN, WHERE THEIR DAUGHTER, RAMONA, WAS BORN.  AFTER PAT MET & MARRIED THE LOVE OF HER LIFE, GENE IN 1988, THEY ENJOYED TOURING AMERICA IN THEIR RV.

PAT RETIRED AS A NURSE AIDE FROM STILLWATERS IN CALUMET, AND ALSO WORKED AT CALUMET ELECTRONICS, ENRIETTI’S AND THE BON TON IN LAURIUM.

PAT AND GENE WERE ACTIVE WITH THE SALVATION ARMY, SINGING WHEREVER THEIR CAMPER WAS PARKED IN EITHER FLORIDA OR MICHIGAN.

PAT WAS AN AVID MUSICIAN, AND LOVED TO PLAY GUITAR & SING WITH OTHERS. SHE PLAYED MANY LOCAL VENUES, INCLUDING EVENTS AT GAY, MOHAWK, THE CALUMET THEATER, MISERY BAY, AGATE BEACH, AS WELL AS WITH JIM & LORETTA LAPLANDER AND RON LAHTI, JUST TO NAME A FEW. THERE ARE SO MANY HAPPY MEMORIES OF PAT SINGING AND PLAYING GUITAR, WE CAN’T LIST THEM ALL.

 HAVING COME FROM A MUSICAL FAMILY, MANY GREAT MEMORIES WERE MADE SINGING WITH HER STEP-DAD, AS WELL AS HER CHILDREN, AUNTS, UNCLES, & COUSINS DURING JAM SESSIONS, AND AT THE TAURIAINEN FAMILY CAMP IN GAY, MI.

SHE WAS A MEMBER OF THE LAURIUM SHINING LIGHT CHURCH IN LAURIUM, AND  POST 90 LADIES AUXILARY IN LAKE LINDEN.

PAT LOOKED FORWARD TO GETTING TOGETHER WITH HER LONGTIME FRIENDS & APPRECIATED THE LOVE & LAUGHTER. THANKS TO ALL WHO CALLED & VISITED (LOIE, SANDY, BEV, ELAINE & SUE)

PAT & HER FAMILY ARE VERY APPRECIATIVE OF THE CARE GIVEN BY DR. TOM FOR MANY YEARS.

TO TOM, RENEE, MADDY, ABBY, MIKE, BEN & ROSE – SHE’LL ALWAYS BE “GRAMMA PAT”.

PAT & HER FAMILY ARE VERY GRATEFUL FOR THE MANY YEARS OF CARE WITH THE WONDERFUL STAFF AT UPCAP & AT-HOME-COMPANIONS, AND SINCE AUGUST 2020, THE STAFF AT PORTAGE POINTE.

PAT KNEW THAT HER “GIRLS” (BRENDA, DEBBIE, LISA, ROSE, SUE, CRYSTAL) LOVED HER AS MUCH AS SHE LOVED THEM.

PAT WAS KNOWN FOR BEING “SASSY” AND ALWAYS KEPT THOSE WHO VISITED HER ON THEIR TOES.

SHE IS PRECEDED IN DEATH BY HER PARENTS, ELIZABETH & ELWOOD TAURIAINEN AND LORNE KINSMAN, BROTHERS, WILLIAM & LORNE (BOB) KINSMAN, CHILDREN, KIMBERLY HANSON & DONALD (GEB) ELANDER, GRANDCHILDREN     DONALD ELANDER, JR., AND, INFANT GRANDSONS, ZACHARY & SAMUEL ELANDER.

SHE IS SURVIVED BY HER DAUGHTER:     RAMONA (MARK) ENGLUND – LAKE LINDEN, MI

GRANDCHILDREN :  CHRISTOPHER (ANGIE) ELANDER – COLDWATER, OH, ADRIA (JASON) LAPLANDER – HUBBELL, MI
ARIC (ELYSSA) DANIS – ESTERO, FL, NAOMILYNN (SELENA) ELANDER – HOUGHTON, MI

GREAT GRANDCHILDREN:   ETHAN & LAUREN ELANDER, ELIZA & ELLIANA LAPLANDER,
MADELYN PUURI & WILLIAM MOMENEE, BLEYSE ELANDER

DAUGHTER-IN-LAW:  KAY ELANDER – HANCOCK, MI

SON-IN-LAW: LARS HANSON – WEST BEND, WI

SISTER-IN-LAW:   LORRAINE ELANDER – PHOENIX, AZ

ALONG WITH SEVERAL NIECES, NEPHEW & COUSINS.

HOPEFULLY, THE FAMILY CAN HAVE A LOCAL MEMORIAL SERVICE SOMETIME IN THE SUMMER OF 2021.

BURIAL WILL BE BY GENE’S SIDE – AT GILMORE TOWNSHIP CEMETERY IN FARWELL, MI – ALSO, DURING THE SUMMER OF 2021.

ONLINE CONDOLENCES FOR THE FAMILY MAY BE LEFT AT WWW.ERICKSONCROWLEYPETERSON.COM