Honoring Tradition.
Celebrating Life.
//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-life-panel.jpg

Lorraine Gillman

June 4, 1926 - April 23, 2015
Grand Rapids, MI

//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-01.jpg



Visitation

Monday, April 27, 2015
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM EDT
Heritage Life Story Funeral Homes
Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel
2120 Lake Michigan Dr., N.W.
Grand Rapids, MI 49504
(616) 453-8263
Driving Directions

Service

Monday, April 27, 2015
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM EDT
Heritage Life Story Funeral Homes
Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel
2120 Lake Michigan Dr., N.W.
Grand Rapids, MI 49504
(616) 453-8263
Driving Directions

Service

Tuesday, April 28, 2015
11:00 AM EDT
Faith Lutheran Church
2740 Fuller N.E.
Grand Rapids, MI 49505

Contributions


At the family's request memorial contributions are to be made to those listed below. Please forward payment directly to the memorial of your choice.

Faith Lutheran Church
2740 Fuller N.E.
Grand Rapids, MI 49505

St. Thomas Lutheran Church
408 W. 2nd Street
Trufant, MI 49347

Flowers


Below is the contact information for a florist recommended by the funeral home.

Ball Park Floral
8 Valley Ave.
Grand Rapids, MI 49504
(616) 459-3409
Driving Directions
Web Site

Life Story / Obituary


//cdn.lifestorynet.com/fh/view-life-story-video.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-02.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-03.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-04.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-05.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/fh/download-memory-folder.jpg
Print

On a fine summer day, June 4th of 1926, Lorraine Elizabeth Gillman was born right in the middle of the Roaring Twenties when the world was alive with dancing, cinema, radio, jazz, automobiles and perhaps most remarkable, sliced bread. She was born where she has lived her entire life, in the lovely city of Grand Rapids. She lived with her mom, Marie Priest, and her dad, Garland Eno, at Grandma Fritz’s house until she was three years old when her parents divorced and her dad moved to New York. Although he left, she was never forgotten and not a birthday or Christmas went by without her receiving a card from a New York address.

It was during this time that the Great Depression hit, affecting so many lives and certainly theirs. Jobs were hard to get and everyone was watching their pennies. Lorraine remembers putting paper in her shoes until more shoes were available, but she also remembers always being warm, always being fed and always being loved.

These were simple times and she loved to play with her doll, MaryAnn as well as jumprope and rollerskate with the set of skates her dad sent her from New York. She and her mom were always close and they worked hard, her mother as a seamstress and Lorraine as a student until she graduated high school at Catholic Central. About that time, mother remarried to a man named Garrett Priest who had a daughter named Virginia. Soon another daughter was born, Kathy, and even though there was a significant age difference, she and Lorraine have always been very close.

As a graduation gift, her dad brought Lorraine to New York, this being the first time she had ever left Grand Rapids. It was here that Lorraine got her first taste of travel, which would result in a life long passion. Her dad worked as a guard for GM and had remarried to a nice woman named Elma with whom he had two more children, Laura and Edgar. Together they saw all the sites…Broadway shows with girls kicking their legs and even to what would be the first movie Lorraine ever saw in a theater – The White Cliffs of Dover. When her dad said goodbye, he put her on the train but first pulled the conductor aside to say, “She’s never traveled before, so you keep an eye on her.”

Soon after, Lorraine got her first job as an usher at the downtown theater on Monroe Street. She saved up her money because she wanted to get something special for her mother. Her mom was a generous woman, which Lorraine wanted to be and so she worked hard until she had saved up enough to give her mom a brand new gold wristwatch.

Her mother had taken such good care of her for all those years and now it was time for another special person to take care of her. On a blind date at age 19, Lorraine met, who would become the love of her life, Donald Alton Gillman. He had just gotten out of the Navy and had a crisp collared shirt and a fantastic tan. They met that night and stuck together ever since. She remembers that they enjoyed listening to radio programs together and strolling down Monroe Avenue to see the holiday window displays when the town looked like a snow globe.

One night she received a phone call from a radio announcer with the news that she had just won a brand new car! The year was 1948 when cars were a pretty big deal. She had purchased a raffle ticket, which she along with everyone in the house was now digging through her entire bedroom to find. They finally found it and headed all the way to Detroit to pick up her brand new 1948 two-door blue Chevrolet.

In April of 1949, Don & Lorraine were married and spent their honeymoon in New York, the glimmering city she fondly remembered from her graduation trip. Don got a job balancing the registers at Wurzberg’s Department Store and Lorraine worked in the billing department for Toledo Plate and Glass. They lived in an apartment for several years until they were ready to start a family. They built their first house in Shawmut Hills and soon after, on a sparkling white January day, welcomed their first child, Nancy. The month prior, Lorraine was still working and trying to keep up with her job until Christmas when they handed out bonuses. She had her heart set on getting a brand new washer and dryer, but her office had a lot of steps and three weeks prior, she just couldn’t make it. Her employer saw how hard she had worked and surprised her with a bonus anyway, so she went off happily to have her new baby in her new house with her new washer and dryer. Soon after Dave was born and as they outgrew that house, they built another new house on Oakhurst where they would have their third child. Lorraine figured Nancy would want a sister and Dave would want a brother, so she told Nancy she could name the baby if it was a boy and Dave could name the baby if it was a girl. As it was, they welcomed their third child, who Nancy named Dan – this completing their family of five.

The street was full of children and red tricycles wheeling about, so all the mothers would gather in the street midday and have what they called “Coffee Clutches” to sip coffee and chit chat the day away as the kids played merrily. When the husbands came home, it was off to dinner…perhaps for Tuna Casserole.

Lorraine loved to dance, but Don did not. He was more of a water guy. So, he made her a deal. He said if she learned how to swim, he would learn how to dance. But Lorraine didn’t like swimming, so Don swam and Lorraine danced. They did share many memories together though. They loved big band music and attending the kids’ sports games. They were diehard U of M fans adorning their home with lots of maize and blue. They were churchgoers. They enjoyed The Lawrence Welk Show. They loved traveling the most, and throughout the course of their marriage, made it to every state in the US from an icy Alaskan cruise to the tropical paradise of Hawaii which would become Lorraine’s all time favorite destination. They also spent a lot of time up north in the cottage they built and enjoyed many summers with lakeside barbeques and pontoon rides. Also visiting their cottage are nine grand children and eight great grandchildren who are proudly displayed in dozens of picture frames on their mantle and throughout their house. Family was foremost in Lorraine’s life and all she did reflected her love for her entire family.

Don said that when he retired he would take Lorraine to Florida every year, and every year, he kept his promise. He was always a faithful, trustworthy man. Lorraine named Don as her role model. She said he was hardworking and had such a strong moral foundation and always saw the best in people. Not to mention, he kissed her every night before they went to bed. In January of 2011, much too soon, Don went home to be with the Lord after sharing a marriage together with Lorraine that was built on love and trust for 61 years.

But life marches on. And Lorraine has been marching since 1926. When asked what life long advice she would give, she said…

“To be thankful because all of life is a gift. Every day. And every year.”

It was a gift to rollerskate down Milwaukee Street when she was a little girl.

It was a gift to receive her high school diploma as she became a graduate.

It was a gift to marry the man of her dreams as she became a wife.

It was a gift to bring three children into this world as she became a mother.

It was a gift to attend every thing from soccer games to graduations as a grandmother.

It was a gift to treat children to a day at the theater with tubs of hot buttered popcorn and boxed candy treats as a great grandmother.

And it was a gift to walk into the Secretary of State at age 87 and receive her driver’s license as she became a reminder that anything is possible.

After some time she met a gentleman by the name of Chet Smith and she and Chet spent quality time together enjoying companionship and each others company.

And it’s true. Just like Lorraine’s favorite Bible verse, Isaiah 40:31 says, “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Lorraine has been in our hearts for 88 years and always will be.

Mrs. Lorraine E. Gillman, aged 88 of Grand Rapids went to be with her Lord and savior Thursday April 23, 2015. She was preceded in death by her husband, Donald Gillman. Surviving are her children: Nancy and Lou Baas, David and Barbara Gillman, Daniel and Janice Gillman; her nine grandchildren, nine great grand children, her brother and sister-in-law: Edgar and Nancy Eno; her sisters and brothers-in- law: Kathleen and John Banks, Laura and Norman Smith, nieces and nephews and her dear friend Chet Smith. Lorraine was a 1944 graduate of Catholic Central High School. Relatives and friends are invited to visit with the family Monday from 2-4 and 6-8 P.M. at the Heritage Life Story Funeral Home, Alt and Shawmut Hills Chapel, 2120 Lake Michigan Dr. NW. A memorial service will be held Tuesday at 11 A.M. at Faith Lutheran Church, 2740 Fuller N.E. with Rev. Kevin Sullivan officiating. For those who wish, memorial contributions to Faith Lutheran Church or St. Thomas Lutheran Church of Trufant, 408 W. 2nd St. Trufant, MI 49347. To read more of Lorraine’s life, share a memory or sign the online register book please visit www.lifestorynet.com

//cdn.lifestorynet.com/fh/view-life-story-video.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-02.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-03.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-04.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/obituaries/016/107174/107174-05.jpg//cdn.lifestorynet.com/fh/download-memory-folder.jpg