Services celebrating her life will be held at 1 PM on Friday, Jan 25, at the Fairplain Chapel of Florin Funeral Service in Benton Township. Burial will follow in Crystal Springs Cemetery. The family will receive friends and relatives beginning at 11 AM on Friday at the Fairplain Chapel. Please share memories, messages or photos at www.florin.net.
Joanne was born on Jan 22, 1931 in Gary IN to Esther R. Kneeper and John N. Stanton. She was married to her husband, James Gardner Phillips, from 1950 to 1973. Joanne was named Benton Harbor Fireman’s Queen in 1951. In 1961 Joanne was the Vice-President and program chairman of the PTA council in which she served until 1969. She was also a member of the Mercy Hospital Auxiliary and volunteered at Fairplain West School reading to the students at “Story Time Hour”. In 1963 she opened her business called “Custom-Maid House of Arts” which she operated for many years. In 1974 she accepted employment in the Admitting Dept at Mercy Hospital and later at Memorial/Lakeland and was there until 1995 when she retired. For the next five years she volunteered at the Information Desk at Lakeland. Her volunteering continued as she began to teach adult literacy reading classes. Joanne was a Christian woman who helped with many church activities and activities in the community including the Cub Scout and Blossomtime when she was one of three judges to choose one of our Blossomtime Queens. Her hobbies include oil painting, knitting, scrap booking and gardening. The family wishes a special thanks for the love and care given by the staff at the Hospice Caring Circle.
Her family includes her daughter, Kristi (Jack) Bultema of Benton Harbor; her son, Jim (Laura) Phillips of Tempe, AZ; her 4 grandchildren, Rebecca Moore of Coloma, Mark Collins of Watervliet, Jamie Miller of Bridgman and Keith Bultema of South Haven; her 9 great grandchildren, Brian, Isaac, Kameron, Isabella, Jesse, Easton, Mason, Austin and Katelynn and her 2 great great grandchildren, Lola and Henry. She was preceded in death by her parents, her 2 sons, Mark and Gary, her sister, Janet Burich, her 2 brothers, Jack and James Stanton and her 1 grandchild, Matthew J. Phillips.
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