Mary Brouwer

Mary passed away peacefully in her sleep on May 12, 2017 after many years of dealing with dementia. Mary was born on March 14, 1919 in Des Moines, Iowa to Riley and Inez (Crawford) Lamson. She has been a resident of Portage, MI since 1930. In 1940 she married Rex Sherman who preceded her in death in 1945 as the result of WWII. Together they had one daughter, Rosemary Kay Sherman. In 1947 she married Edward "Bud" Brouwer who preceded her in death in 2006. Together they had three daughters, Linda (Clyde) Trainer of Portage/Schoolcraft, Ruth (Jim) Kelecava of Portage and Patty (Don) Vought of Climax. Mary also leaves behind a son-in-law, Frank Woodward, and 11 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. Mary worked at various places during her life including Portage Pipe Co., Michigan Bell Telephone and Cavalier Mailing Services. She is the longest continuous member of the Portage First United Methodist Church (now Pathfinder) since coming to Portage in 1930. Mary is preceded in death by her daughter Rosemary and her siblings: Ed Lamson of Iowa, Lyle Lamson of Florida and Etta DeKorte of Portage. The family will receive friends from 12:00 to 1:00 PM on Monday, May 15th at Portage First United Methodist Church (Pathfinder) at 8740 S. Westnedge Ave. where a service to celebrate Mary's life will begin at 1:00PM. Immediately following the service there will be a time of food and fellowship, then burial will take place in Portage Central Cemetery. Memorial contributions can be made to the American Diabetes Foundation, American Heart Assn. or the Kalamazoo Humane Society. Please visit Mary's personalized guest book at www.langelands.com