Wilson Lee Church

Mr. (Wilson) Lee Church, 87 of Holly, passed away Monday, July 23, 2012 in Holly while under hospice care. Mr. Church was born in Huron County on July 15, 1925 to the late Bruce and Lulia (Lula) Susan Church (Hartman). His grandfather Barzil Church homesteaded in Huron Co in the 1880s. Mr. Church attended Bad Axe High School. He began his work life early at age 15 at Cadillac Motor in Detroit, then was drafted at 17 to the US Navy in WWII. He was a machinist most of his life, in small shops and at Ford Motor, where he retired in 1983. He also had a small residential demolition business most of his life that he shared with his children. He was interested in the stock market most of his life and was an avid daily reader of the Wall Street Journal and other daily newspapers, along with Time magazine. He enjoyed traveling to the Middle East several times, visiting one of his children and family working there at the time. He had been a lifelong Detroiter till he moved to Holly, outside of Flint MI in 1993. He enjoyed listening to Detroit Tigers baseball games on the radio. Mr. Church is survived by his daughter Joanne Marie (Tom) Wilson, grandson Tom, granddaughter Holly, great-grandchildren Carly, Connor, and Hailey; son Garry Lee (Sarah), granddaughter Amelia, great-grandson Jack, grandson Sam; son Stephen Bruce (Diann, now deceased) granddaughter Ame, and grandsons Andrew and Nathan; and daughter Susan Patricia LaValley and grandsons Spenser and John-Patrick; cousins David, Harold, Yvonne, and Stella Church & family of Mattawa ON, Canada, dear nephew Bill Church, nephew Bob, nieces Nancy & Sharon, and Janet; his caregivers from Grace Hospice, Pat, Candy, Sheryl, Dawn, Aaron and Jacob. He was preceded in death by his parents, Bruce in 1959, and Lula in 1966, and 3 brothers, John (1966), Bob (1991, and Jim (1996). The funeral service will be Saturday, July 28 at 1:00 pm at the Zinger-Smigielski Funeral Home in Ubly. Pastor John Rapson will officiate. Burial will be in Valley Cemetery in Ubly. Visitation will be at the Zinger-Smigielski Funeral Home in Ubly on Saturday from 11 am until the service at 1:00 pm.