Melvin, 94, of Battle Creek, passed away in the love and care of his family at his son’s home on Monday, December 24, 2018. Mel was born to Edward and Katherine (Barth) Wood.
He grew up on his family’s farm. His parents died within a year of each other when he was 18. Besides growing up during the depression with its hardships, the loss of his parents of course made his youth harder. He attended the Bingham Township Country School and graduated from Woden High School. He started driving to school when he was 10. During his 6th and 7th grade years he would drive home at lunch time during planting and harvest to take over the tractor in the field, so his older brother could eat lunch. He’d then drive back to school to resume his studies.
After the death of his parents and high school graduation, he moved to Michigan. It was 1942 and WWII was raging and of course like so many others Mel went to enlist. After being physically disqualified during 3 attempts in different locations Mel took a job at the Willow Run Bomber Plant in Ypsilanti to do his part. After production wound down as the war did, Mel was laid off and moved back to Iowa to work for his brother John on the family farm.
Mel returned to Michigan in 1946 to open a Standard Oil Station in Burr Oak with his brother-in-law Ken Kuchenreuther. The gas station was his path to meet the love of his life Mary M. Smith. Mary lived in Burr Oak and would incessantly roll over the air hose with her roller skates to ring the station bell to get Mel’s attention. The annoyance grew to a love for them that resulted in their marriage on March 31, 1951 at the rectory of Holy Angels Catholic Church in Sturgis. The couple enjoyed a loving fruitful marriage for 66 years until Mary’s death on July 30, 2017.
In 1952 the couple moved to Battle Creek and made their home there the rest of their lives. Mel became a firefighter for the U.S. Army at Fort Custer. He was a good firefighter, beating his Fire Chief to a fire once with the engine, with which the Fire Chief was oddly unhappy! As the post war occupancy of Fort Custer shrunk so did the need for full time firefighters, and he was laid off.
Mel then went to work at Eatons in Battle Creek in the valve department until going to work for Clark Equipment Company in Battle Creek. He worked at Clark’s until 1960 then went to work for the Kellogg Company from which he retired in 1987. Mel always worked two jobs when he and Mary were raising their family. He worked for a diaper service (until he decided he had enough of that with his own children) and then worked again with his brother-in-law Ken at the service station he operated in Battle Creek at the corner of Main Street and Michigan Avenue.
Mel and Mary together helped found St. Jerome Catholic Church and school. They all initially met at the Bedford Township #1 fire station until they raised funds to build the actual church building (Mel cooked a lot of pancakes at fundraises for the church). He was a member of the Men’s Club and a devoted member of St. Jerome until his death. Mel enjoyed 15 winters in Zephyrhills, Florida with Mary. There he enjoyed taking visiting family and friends to Busch Gardens which he knew like the back of his hand. He was very active and still was playing volleyball in their Park in Florida when he was 85, much to the amazement of his children whom he wore out while playing volleyball with them! He and Mary were honored as King and Queen of Southern Charm, the park where they enjoyed winters and played in the “Kitchen Band”.
Mel and Mary spent their summers at Lighthouse Village in Homer, where the grandchildren often visited. Mel and Mary loved playing cards, mostly Euchre with their best friends, Elwyn and Barbara Warren. He was quite the card shark, and his children learned many strategies from him. He was very proud of his family, especially when his sons Tim and John started Wood Brothers Automotive. He was often found there supervising them.
Mel is survived by his seven children, Judith (Kurt) Miller of Bay City, Glen (Cindy) Wood of Nicholasville, Kentucky, John (Diane) Wood of Battle Creek, Margaret (Tom) Hurst of Marshall, and Timothy (Tara) Wood, Thomas (Lori) Wood and Catherine Wood-Andrews all of Battle Creek; 20 grandchildren, 34 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren; his sister, Claribel Devries, 96, of Buffalo Center, Iowa; and many, many nieces and nephews.
Besides his wife Mary, he was preceded in death by a son, Terrance Allan Wood, a great grandson Kieffer Johnson and brothers William, John, and Elmer, and sisters Ruby Godfredson and Irene Kuchenreuther.
The Recitation of the Rosary was held. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at St. Jerome Catholic Church by Rev. Fr. Jose Haro on Monday, Dec. 31. A luncheon followed mass at St. Jerome. Cremation was conducted following mass.
The family suggests you remember Mel with a memorial contribution to The Kieffer G. Johnson Memorial Fund at the Battle Creek Community Foundation or the Humane Society.
Kempf Funeral Home
He grew up on his family’s farm. His parents died within a year of each other when he was 18. Besides growing up during the depression with its hardships, the loss of his parents of course made his youth harder. He attended the Bingham Township Country School and graduated from Woden High School. He started driving to school when he was 10. During his 6th and 7th grade years he would drive home at lunch time during planting and harvest to take over the tractor in the field, so his older brother could eat lunch. He’d then drive back to school to resume his studies.
After the death of his parents and high school graduation, he moved to Michigan. It was 1942 and WWII was raging and of course like so many others Mel went to enlist. After being physically disqualified during 3 attempts in different locations Mel took a job at the Willow Run Bomber Plant in Ypsilanti to do his part. After production wound down as the war did, Mel was laid off and moved back to Iowa to work for his brother John on the family farm.
Mel returned to Michigan in 1946 to open a Standard Oil Station in Burr Oak with his brother-in-law Ken Kuchenreuther. The gas station was his path to meet the love of his life Mary M. Smith. Mary lived in Burr Oak and would incessantly roll over the air hose with her roller skates to ring the station bell to get Mel’s attention. The annoyance grew to a love for them that resulted in their marriage on March 31, 1951 at the rectory of Holy Angels Catholic Church in Sturgis. The couple enjoyed a loving fruitful marriage for 66 years until Mary’s death on July 30, 2017.
In 1952 the couple moved to Battle Creek and made their home there the rest of their lives. Mel became a firefighter for the U.S. Army at Fort Custer. He was a good firefighter, beating his Fire Chief to a fire once with the engine, with which the Fire Chief was oddly unhappy! As the post war occupancy of Fort Custer shrunk so did the need for full time firefighters, and he was laid off.
Mel then went to work at Eatons in Battle Creek in the valve department until going to work for Clark Equipment Company in Battle Creek. He worked at Clark’s until 1960 then went to work for the Kellogg Company from which he retired in 1987. Mel always worked two jobs when he and Mary were raising their family. He worked for a diaper service (until he decided he had enough of that with his own children) and then worked again with his brother-in-law Ken at the service station he operated in Battle Creek at the corner of Main Street and Michigan Avenue.
Mel and Mary together helped found St. Jerome Catholic Church and school. They all initially met at the Bedford Township #1 fire station until they raised funds to build the actual church building (Mel cooked a lot of pancakes at fundraises for the church). He was a member of the Men’s Club and a devoted member of St. Jerome until his death. Mel enjoyed 15 winters in Zephyrhills, Florida with Mary. There he enjoyed taking visiting family and friends to Busch Gardens which he knew like the back of his hand. He was very active and still was playing volleyball in their Park in Florida when he was 85, much to the amazement of his children whom he wore out while playing volleyball with them! He and Mary were honored as King and Queen of Southern Charm, the park where they enjoyed winters and played in the “Kitchen Band”.
Mel and Mary spent their summers at Lighthouse Village in Homer, where the grandchildren often visited. Mel and Mary loved playing cards, mostly Euchre with their best friends, Elwyn and Barbara Warren. He was quite the card shark, and his children learned many strategies from him. He was very proud of his family, especially when his sons Tim and John started Wood Brothers Automotive. He was often found there supervising them.
Mel is survived by his seven children, Judith (Kurt) Miller of Bay City, Glen (Cindy) Wood of Nicholasville, Kentucky, John (Diane) Wood of Battle Creek, Margaret (Tom) Hurst of Marshall, and Timothy (Tara) Wood, Thomas (Lori) Wood and Catherine Wood-Andrews all of Battle Creek; 20 grandchildren, 34 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren; his sister, Claribel Devries, 96, of Buffalo Center, Iowa; and many, many nieces and nephews.
Besides his wife Mary, he was preceded in death by a son, Terrance Allan Wood, a great grandson Kieffer Johnson and brothers William, John, and Elmer, and sisters Ruby Godfredson and Irene Kuchenreuther.
The Recitation of the Rosary was held. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at St. Jerome Catholic Church by Rev. Fr. Jose Haro on Monday, Dec. 31. A luncheon followed mass at St. Jerome. Cremation was conducted following mass.
The family suggests you remember Mel with a memorial contribution to The Kieffer G. Johnson Memorial Fund at the Battle Creek Community Foundation or the Humane Society.
Kempf Funeral Home
Melvin, 94, of Battle Creek, passed away in the love and care of his family at his son’s home on Monday, December 24, 2018. Mel was born to Edward and Katherine (Barth) Wood.
He grew up on his family’s farm. His parents died within a year of each other when he was 18. Besides growing up during the depression with its hardships, the loss of his parents of course made his youth harder. He attended the Bingham Township Country School and graduated from Woden High School. He started driving to school when he was 10. During his 6th and 7th grade years he would drive home at lunch time during planting and harvest to take over the tractor in the field, so his older brother could eat lunch. He’d then drive back to school to resume his studies.
After the death of his parents and high school graduation, he moved to Michigan. It was 1942 and WWII was raging and of course like so many others Mel went to enlist. After being physically disqualified during 3 attempts in different locations Mel took a job at the Willow Run Bomber Plant in Ypsilanti to do his part. After production wound down as the war did, Mel was laid off and moved back to Iowa to work for his brother John on the family farm.
Mel returned to Michigan in 1946 to open a Standard Oil Station in Burr Oak with his brother-in-law Ken Kuchenreuther. The gas station was his path to meet the love of his life Mary M. Smith. Mary lived in Burr Oak and would incessantly roll over the air hose with her roller skates to ring the station bell to get Mel’s attention. The annoyance grew to a love for them that resulted in their marriage on March 31, 1951 at the rectory of Holy Angels Catholic Church in Sturgis. The couple enjoyed a loving fruitful marriage for 66 years until Mary’s death on July 30, 2017.
In 1952 the couple moved to Battle Creek and made their home there the rest of their lives. Mel became a firefighter for the U.S. Army at Fort Custer. He was a good firefighter, beating his Fire Chief to a fire once with the engine, with which the Fire Chief was oddly unhappy! As the post war occupancy of Fort Custer shrunk so did the need for full time firefighters, and he was laid off.
Mel then went to work at Eatons in Battle Creek in the valve department until going to work for Clark Equipment Company in Battle Creek. He worked at Clark’s until 1960 then went to work for the Kellogg Company from which he retired in 1987. Mel always worked two jobs when he and Mary were raising their family. He worked for a diaper service (until he decided he had enough of that with his own children) and then worked again with his brother-in-law Ken at the service station he operated in Battle Creek at the corner of Main Street and Michigan Avenue.
Mel and Mary together helped found St. Jerome Catholic Church and school. They all initially met at the Bedford Township #1 fire station until they raised funds to build the actual church building (Mel cooked a lot of pancakes at fundraises for the church). He was a member of the Men’s Club and a devoted member of St. Jerome until his death. Mel enjoyed 15 winters in Zephyrhills, Florida with Mary. There he enjoyed taking visiting family and friends to Busch Gardens which he knew like the back of his hand. He was very active and still was playing volleyball in their Park in Florida when he was 85, much to the amazement of his children whom he wore out while playing volleyball with them! He and Mary were honored as King and Queen of Southern Charm, the park where they enjoyed winters and played in the “Kitchen Band”.
Mel and Mary spent their summers at Lighthouse Village in Homer, where the grandchildren often visited. Mel and Mary loved playing cards, mostly Euchre with their best friends, Elwyn and Barbara Warren. He was quite the card shark, and his children learned many strategies from him. He was very proud of his family, especially when his sons Tim and John started Wood Brothers Automotive. He was often found there supervising them.
Mel is survived by his seven children, Judith (Kurt) Miller of Bay City, Glen (Cindy) Wood of Nicholasville, Kentucky, John (Diane) Wood of Battle Creek, Margaret (Tom) Hurst of Marshall, and Timothy (Tara) Wood, Thomas (Lori) Wood and Catherine Wood-Andrews all of Battle Creek; 20 grandchildren, 34 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren; his sister, Claribel Devries, 96, of Buffalo Center, Iowa; and many, many nieces and nephews.
Besides his wife Mary, he was preceded in death by a son, Terrance Allan Wood, a great grandson Kieffer Johnson and brothers William, John, and Elmer, and sisters Ruby Godfredson and Irene Kuchenreuther.
The Recitation of the Rosary was held. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at St. Jerome Catholic Church by Rev. Fr. Jose Haro on Monday, Dec. 31. A luncheon followed mass at St. Jerome. Cremation was conducted following mass.
The family suggests you remember Mel with a memorial contribution to The Kieffer G. Johnson Memorial Fund at the Battle Creek Community Foundation or the Humane Society.
Kempf Funeral Home
He grew up on his family’s farm. His parents died within a year of each other when he was 18. Besides growing up during the depression with its hardships, the loss of his parents of course made his youth harder. He attended the Bingham Township Country School and graduated from Woden High School. He started driving to school when he was 10. During his 6th and 7th grade years he would drive home at lunch time during planting and harvest to take over the tractor in the field, so his older brother could eat lunch. He’d then drive back to school to resume his studies.
After the death of his parents and high school graduation, he moved to Michigan. It was 1942 and WWII was raging and of course like so many others Mel went to enlist. After being physically disqualified during 3 attempts in different locations Mel took a job at the Willow Run Bomber Plant in Ypsilanti to do his part. After production wound down as the war did, Mel was laid off and moved back to Iowa to work for his brother John on the family farm.
Mel returned to Michigan in 1946 to open a Standard Oil Station in Burr Oak with his brother-in-law Ken Kuchenreuther. The gas station was his path to meet the love of his life Mary M. Smith. Mary lived in Burr Oak and would incessantly roll over the air hose with her roller skates to ring the station bell to get Mel’s attention. The annoyance grew to a love for them that resulted in their marriage on March 31, 1951 at the rectory of Holy Angels Catholic Church in Sturgis. The couple enjoyed a loving fruitful marriage for 66 years until Mary’s death on July 30, 2017.
In 1952 the couple moved to Battle Creek and made their home there the rest of their lives. Mel became a firefighter for the U.S. Army at Fort Custer. He was a good firefighter, beating his Fire Chief to a fire once with the engine, with which the Fire Chief was oddly unhappy! As the post war occupancy of Fort Custer shrunk so did the need for full time firefighters, and he was laid off.
Mel then went to work at Eatons in Battle Creek in the valve department until going to work for Clark Equipment Company in Battle Creek. He worked at Clark’s until 1960 then went to work for the Kellogg Company from which he retired in 1987. Mel always worked two jobs when he and Mary were raising their family. He worked for a diaper service (until he decided he had enough of that with his own children) and then worked again with his brother-in-law Ken at the service station he operated in Battle Creek at the corner of Main Street and Michigan Avenue.
Mel and Mary together helped found St. Jerome Catholic Church and school. They all initially met at the Bedford Township #1 fire station until they raised funds to build the actual church building (Mel cooked a lot of pancakes at fundraises for the church). He was a member of the Men’s Club and a devoted member of St. Jerome until his death. Mel enjoyed 15 winters in Zephyrhills, Florida with Mary. There he enjoyed taking visiting family and friends to Busch Gardens which he knew like the back of his hand. He was very active and still was playing volleyball in their Park in Florida when he was 85, much to the amazement of his children whom he wore out while playing volleyball with them! He and Mary were honored as King and Queen of Southern Charm, the park where they enjoyed winters and played in the “Kitchen Band”.
Mel and Mary spent their summers at Lighthouse Village in Homer, where the grandchildren often visited. Mel and Mary loved playing cards, mostly Euchre with their best friends, Elwyn and Barbara Warren. He was quite the card shark, and his children learned many strategies from him. He was very proud of his family, especially when his sons Tim and John started Wood Brothers Automotive. He was often found there supervising them.
Mel is survived by his seven children, Judith (Kurt) Miller of Bay City, Glen (Cindy) Wood of Nicholasville, Kentucky, John (Diane) Wood of Battle Creek, Margaret (Tom) Hurst of Marshall, and Timothy (Tara) Wood, Thomas (Lori) Wood and Catherine Wood-Andrews all of Battle Creek; 20 grandchildren, 34 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren; his sister, Claribel Devries, 96, of Buffalo Center, Iowa; and many, many nieces and nephews.
Besides his wife Mary, he was preceded in death by a son, Terrance Allan Wood, a great grandson Kieffer Johnson and brothers William, John, and Elmer, and sisters Ruby Godfredson and Irene Kuchenreuther.
The Recitation of the Rosary was held. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at St. Jerome Catholic Church by Rev. Fr. Jose Haro on Monday, Dec. 31. A luncheon followed mass at St. Jerome. Cremation was conducted following mass.
The family suggests you remember Mel with a memorial contribution to The Kieffer G. Johnson Memorial Fund at the Battle Creek Community Foundation or the Humane Society.
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