Jimmie McAnaw

Having celebrated her 29th birthday 57 times, Flo McAnaw passed away on December 30, 2018 in Kalamazoo, MI. Jimmie Flodell Appleton McAnaw was born on September 29, 1932 in Gibson County, Tennessee to Alta Mary Johnson Appleton and James Roy Appleton. She was the sixth daughter born into a family of nine living children, eight of them girls. She grew up helping to work the family farm, from milking the cows to picking cotton. She excelled in high school, graduating second in her class and competing on the girls' basketball team. Basketball was her sport, and she enthusiastically supported the Tennessee Lady Vols. Flo attended Union University in Jackson, TN, where she completed a Bachelor's degree in Biology and was awarded the 1954 Tigrett Medal, which is awarded each year to an outstanding senior. She continued her studies in Nashville, at the George Peabody College for Teachers (now part of Vanderbilt University), where she was one of the first female Carnegie Scholars, which enabled her to spend a semester studying at Pomona College in California. Flo earned both a Masters degree and an Education Specialist degree. After completing her education, Flo taught at Arkansas State University. The major highlight of her time at Arkansas State was meeting the love of her life, Richard McAnaw. Following their marriage in 1963, she followed him to the University of Iowa, where she furthered scientific research in the labs while he completed his Ph.D. After Richard received his doctorate, Flo and Richard moved to Kalamazoo. Richard was a professor in the Political Science Department at Western Michigan University. Flo divided her time between raising their two children and teaching gross human anatomy to Nursing and Physician's Assistant students at Western Michigan University and biology at Nazareth College. As her children got older, she also served as a substitute teacher in the Kalamazoo Public Schools. After one day at South Jr High, she decided that high school was a better choice for her and limited her subbing to Kalamazoo Central and Loy Norrix. After retiring from teaching, Flo fought breast cancer and won, thanks to excellent care and support from her brother and many sisters. Afterwards, she spent as much time as she could doting on her grandsons and traveling with and to see family. She spent enough time on the phone with her sisters that she nearly put AT&T out of business when they started offering free long distance to other AT&T customers. In October 2015, her heart was broken when Richard passed away after 53 years of marriage. She joined him, passing away peacefully on December 30, 2018 after suffering dementia that took away much of her memory, but never touched the joy that she got from spending time with her children and grandsons. In addition to her beloved Richard, she was preceded in death by her parents, and sisters: Evelyn Gaugh, LaVerne Reed, Christine Dannelley, Elizabeth Hicks, Sarah Henley, and Jane Forrester. She had an older brother, John Appleton, who died shortly after birth. She is survived by her daughter, Claire McAnaw Gallagher (Michael Gallagher) and son, James McAnaw (Heather McAnaw), grandsons Ryan Gallagher and Liam McAnaw, sister Yvonne Buntin (Tommy), brother James Roy Appleton, Jr. (Beverly) and many nieces and nephews. Her family will miss her. We wish to thank the staff at Friendship Village, in Kalamazoo, for taking good care of her day in and day out during the final stages of her dementia. A service will be held on January 19, 2019 at 10:00 am at the First Presbyterian Church, 321 W. South Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49007. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to the scholarship fund at the college of your choice to help a deserving student.