Carrie L. Burns

Carrie Lou Burns, age 54 years of Niles, Michigan; wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, and sister died Monday evening, December 11, 2023 at Corewell Health – Lakeland Hospitals – Niles following prolonged illnesses.

She was born on August 2, 1969 in Sturgis, Michigan to Frederick W. Wolf and Peggy (Halferty) Wolf, and attended schools in White Pigeon and other area school districts.  She continued her education at Southwestern Michigan College, and began a long career as a project manager at North American Signs in South Bend, Indiana.

Carrie and her family are well-known for celebrating Halloween with amazing decorations in their yard in Fulkerson Park, but she also enjoyed celebrating Christmas, even if they didn’t have time to get the Halloween decorations out of the way.  She was an avid crocheter, and an accomplished seamstress, tailoring clothing for her family, and making her own wedding gown.  She read books often, usually historical novels, and as her eyesight declined she learned how to use a computer tablet on which she could enlarge the print to the size that was legible to her.

As a young student, she began playing the clarinet in the school band, and became so proficient that she was honored to be invited to play with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.  She continued with music as an adult, becoming a keyboard artist, and regularly performed with the rock band, Erroneous Life.  She always had pets at home – dogs, cats, and a flock of chickens – but her greatest joy was her family.

On May 31, 2003 at Madelin Bertrand County Park in Niles she married Matthew J. Burns, with whom she celebrated earlier this year the twentieth anniversary of their wedding.  They were sadly preceded in death by a daughter, Ashley Roblero who died on April 9, 2018; an infant daughter, Angel McMillan; Carrie’s father, Frederick W. Wolf on December 22, 2018; and Carrie’s brother, Tate J. Switzer on November 3, 1997.

Surviving family includes her husband, Matt Burns and their children, Dannielle (& Jesse Jaynes) McMillan of South Bend, Matthew (& Nikki Skinner) McMillan of Alabama, Raven Wolf of Niles, Alicia McMillan of Niles, and son-in-law, Lusman Roblero of South Bend; grandchildren Hailey Lintz, Stephen Dunifin, Hunter Jaynes, Chloe McMillan, Kate Skinner, and Tate McMillan; Carrie’s mother, Peggy Davis of Dowagiac; Matt’s parents, Jim and Merva Zaleski of Niles; and Carrie’s siblings, Shuree (& Chante) Wolf of Arizona, Bill (& Danielle) Davis of Georgia, Frederick S. Wolf of Constantine, Michigan,  and Kimberly Davis-Ott of Dowagiac, along with many nieces and nephews.

The funeral service for Carrie Burns will be at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, December 15, 2023 at the Halbritter-Wickens Funeral Home, 615 East Main Street in Niles with Pastor Chuck Zook of Summit Church in Niles officiating.  Committal will follow at Silverbrook Cemetery in Niles.

The family will receive relatives and friends on Thursday, at the funeral home, from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.  Contributions in memory of Carrie may be made to the Greater Niles Senior Center, 1109 Bell Road, Niles, Michigan, 49120, http://www.nilesseniorcenter.org/; or to the Yeager Family Pet Center of the Humane Society of Southwestern Michigan, 5400 Niles Road, Saint Joseph, Michigan, 49085, https://humanesocietyswm.org/ .  Online condolences may be left at:

www.halbritterwickens.com

Carrie clearly loved life, celebrating holidays and family events; and she used life well, as a longtime employee, doing both music and sewing very well; but most importantly she loved the pets and people in her life, especially her children and grandchildren, and above all, Matt.