Mary Grooten-Starner

Age 79, passed away at her home on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, with her loving family by her side. Mary was born in Holland, Michigan on July 1, 1945, one of 11 children to the late Guadalupe Trevino Lopez and Hermelinda Chapa Velasquez Lopez. She attended Nazareth College where she earned a master's degree in social work. Mary worked as a social worker, specializing in mental health and geriatrics. She was an extremely generous person and a caregiver at heart. Mary was a pillar in her community and an advocate for the impoverished and marginalized populations. She spent her entire life fighting for equal rights for everyone, especially for those less fortunate and for women. Mary was a long-time member of the Comstock VFW Post 6252, where she served as the first female Hispanic president of the Ladies Auxiliary and went on to serve as the first female Hispanic district president. She was the matriarch of her family and will be missed by all who knew and loved her. Besides her parents, Mary was preceded in death by her husband, Donald Starner, Sr.; son, John Grooten, Jr.; brothers, Joseph Angel and Michael L. Lopez; and her first husband and father of her children, John Grooten, Sr. She is survived by her children, Connie (Toni Gaskell) Grooten, Gina (Roger) Wesaw, Thomas Grooten and Lydia (Mary) Chapa; 10 grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; siblings, Gregorio (Diane) Lopez, Raymond (Tomilyn) Lopez, Delores Lopez, Lucia Lopez, John (Rebecca) Lopez and Caroline (Mark) Seybert; as well as many nieces and nephews. Private interment will take place at Ft. Custer National Cemetery. Memorial contributions in Mary's memory may be given to the American Heart Association. The family is being served by Langeland Family Funeral Homes Burial & Cremation Services, 622 S. Burdick St., Kalamazoo, MI 49007. Friends and family may share a memory or leave a condolence message online at www.langelands.com.