Obituaries

Elaine R. Burns

of South Lyon, formerly of Chelsea, age 87, died Thursday, March 16, 2017 at the South Lyon Senior Care Center. She was born December 28, 1929 in Detroit, Michigan, the daughter of Archer E. & Dorothy M. (Woodward) Jewell.  Elaine moved to Chelsea in Dec. 2005, coming from Ocala, FL. She has also lived in Detroit, Virginia, & Syacuse, NY  She was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and was a member of the VFW Auxiliary where she was President for three years.

On Dec. 28, 1998, she married John R. Burns, and he preceded her in death on Sept. 2, 2010. Survivors include one son, James (Lois) Gibbons of South Lyon; two step-sons, Jon (Jill) Burns of Trevor, WI, Frank (Sam) Burns of Lowell, IN; a brother David A. (Edna) Jewell; 4 grandchildren, Julielyn, Bradley, & Jennifer Gibbons, Robyn Balander. She was preceded in death by a son, John William Balander, and a sister Barbara Lakoski.

Whitley C. “Scriv” Scrivner

of Chelsea, Michigan, formerly of New Mexico, Arizona, California, and Colorado, age 94, died Thursday, March 9, 2017 at the Chelsea Retirement Community. He was born August 14, 1922 in Tatum, New Mexico, the son of Clarence & Pearl (Rhea) Scrivner.   Scriv was an engineer at Sandia Laboratory in Albuquerque, NM. After retirement, he taught mathematics at Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO.  He also worked with Habitat for Humanity and with many friends as a carpenter and helper.  He had a quick wit, a smart mind, and great love. 

On Feb 12, 1943, he married Katherine Batsel, at the First Baptist Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and she survives.  Other survivors include two daughters, Karen Rhea of Ann Arbor and Jenny Scrivner of Scottsdale, AZ, and 4 grandchildren. Scriv was preceded in death by his parents, 4 brothers, 4 sisters, and a son, Michael.

Patricia Jeanette Wetherbee

of Chelsea, Michigan, formerly of Frostproof, FL, age 85, died Friday, March 10, 2017 at the University of Michigan Hospital. She was born June 24, 1931 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the daughter of John & Victoria (Zurek) Zimmer.

Patricia graduated from Ann Arbor Pioneer in 1950. She was a clerk for J.H. Cousins Dress Shop. Patricia attended St. Thomas Catholic Church in Ann Arbor. She enjoyed traveling and playing bingo.

John C. Allen

John Charles Allen, fondly known as Junior, of Ann Arbor passed quietly among his beloved family at the University of Michigan Hospital in the early hours of March 4, 2017. He was born on August 16, 1934 to John Wesley Allen and Freda Schultz Allen. He met Jean Irene Groeb at a dance in the Pittsfield Union Grange in 1950 and they married on May 6, 1955. They were married almost 62 years and had five children.

He was a hard-working man, who served in the U.S. Naval Reserves. He was a welder and a self-taught engineer who fabricated parts and designed machines for shops and factories in the Ann Arbor area for decades, first as a business owner and later with Bennett Installation and Marsh Plating until his retirement in 1996. Even after his official retirement, John returned to Marsh Plating to work on special projects.