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- [S4] obituary.
Obituary for Ruth A. Harkert
With her family gathered around her, Ruth Annette Harkert, 87, of Traverse City and formerly of Evart, passed away peacefully Saturday, September 21, 2013 at Munson Medical Center.
Born September 13, 1926 in Clio, she was the fourth of eight children born to Jessie Imogene (Fleming) and Earl Isaac Gillett. The family moved back to their ancestral roots in Evart shortly after her birth. She attended Evart Public Schools and graduated from Evart High in 1944. She continued her education at Central Michigan College in Mt. Pleasant, living there with her Uncle Art and Aunt Mae Fleming.
Ruth?s great grandparents, The Rev. Erastus and Anna Fleming were pioneers in Evart, moving there in 1871. The Rev. Fleming was the first Pastor of the newly organized Evart Methodist Church. Her grandparents Will and May Fleming owned and operated Fleming Dairy. Ruth fondly told of the wonderful times spent at the farm, and especially helping Grandpa Fleming deliver milk door to door in the milk wagon pulled by horses. The dairy was later sold to her sister Dorothy and her husband Ted Witbeck, at which time it was known as Ted?s Dairy, based out of Reed City.
Ruth began her working career as a secretary at the Registrar of Deeds office in Reed City prior to her marriage. It was there that she became friends with Lillian Hoffmeyer, introducing Lil to her brother Bill Gillett. Bill was serving in the U. S. Army Air Corp while he and Lillian were dating (they eventually married) and on one of his leaves from the service, Bill brought home with him his best friend Leo Harkert of Davenport, Iowa. The rest is history as they say, and Ruth and Leo married on January 21, 1950 in Evart and shared 58 years together before Leo?s death on January 21, 2008.
After her children were in school, Ruth began working for Evart Public Schools, first in the high school library as an assistant for a couple of years and then for many years in the position of secretary to elementary principal Dwight Cooper, a position she held until her retirement in 1988.
The fourth generation of her family to be a member of the Evart United Methodist Church, she and Leo were very active members there. She had been a member of the United Methodist Women and directed the choir there for many years, as well as serving in many other projects and capacities. She was a voracious reader, enjoyed watching westerns with Leo, traveled and camped in their trailer as well as spending many hours doing embroidery work, winning blue ribbons for many years at the Osceola County Fair. They lived on Hemlock Street in Evart for many years, and then moved to their home on Lake Miramichi, which they so enjoyed. They sold the lake house and moved to their home on South Main Street in Evart before moving to Traverse City in 2004 to be near their family.
Ruth is survived by her children, Rick and his wife Jody Harkert and Linda Puckett, all of Traverse City, her grandchildren, Nicholas (Lindsay) Harkert of Traverse City, Kendry Harkert (Matt Scott) of Interlochen, Tyler Harkert of Kentwood, Tina (Chet) Neihardt of Sarasota, FL, Matthew (Leslie) Puckett of Portage, Renee Puckett of Muskegon and her great grandchildren, Christopher, Kyle, Noah and Emma Rae. Also surviving are her siblings, Joan (Max) Bowman of Plant City, FL, Jim (Lilah) Gillett of Overland Park, KS, David (Pat) Gillett of Greenville and Louise (David) Lantz of Lansing and Elk Rapids. Many nieces and nephews survive,including her ?special? niece Tammy Lantz of Traverse City, who has been so very involved in her life and care; her very special friend and ?adopted granddaughter? Theresa Marsh of Kingsley, her good friend Harriett Bieri of Evart, as well as her many other Evart friends. Also surviving is her sister in law Tootie Buri of Davenport, Iowa. Ruth was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her son in law, Ray Puckett, her siblings, Dorothy (Ted) Witbeck, Helen (Phil) Swanson, Bill (Lillian) Gillett, her great grandson Eadon, nephew, Jerry Bowman and nieces Judy Swanson and Denise Ludwig.
Visitation for Ruth will take place Tuesday, September 24 from 6 until 8 p.m. at the Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home in Traverse City. Visitation will also take place in Evart beginning at 12:30 p.m. ,Wednesday, Sept. 25 at the Evart United Methodist Church with the funeral service following at 1:30 p.m., also at the church. Pastor Melodye Surgeon-Rider will officiate. Burial will be in Forest HIll Cemetery in Evart. To affirm Ruth?s love for the color purple, we would ask that you wear some sort of purple to her visitation or service.
- [S5] Michigan- Marriages.
Name: Earl Isaac Gillett
Race (Original):
Age (Expanded): 25 years
Birth Year: 1896
Birthplace: Clio, Michigan
Spouse's Name: Jessie I. Fleming
Spouse's Race (Original):
Spouse's Age (Expanded): 20 years
Spouse's Birth Year: 1901
Spouse's Birthplace: Evart, Michigan
Event Date: 19 Jun 1921
Event Place: Clio, Genesee, Michigan
Father's Name: Isaac D. Gillett
Mother's Name: Annette Field
Spouse's Father's Name: Wm. Fleming
Spouse's Mother's Name: May Mcmullen
Marital Status:
Previous Wife's Name:
Spouse's Marital Status:
Spouse's Previous Husband's Name:
GS Film number: 2342743
Frame Number:
Digital Folder Number: 4032445
Image Number: 244
Reference ID: v 2 p 43 rn 2079
Citing this Record:
"Michigan Marriages, 1868-1925," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N31V-L62 : 4 December 2014), Earl Isaac Gillett and Jessie I. Fleming, 19 Jun 1921; citing Clio, Genesee, Michigan, v 2 p 43 rn 2079, Department of Vital Records, Lansing; FHL microfilm 2,342,743.
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