John Willis

John Alan Willis, age 67 years of Niles, Michigan died at 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, September 20, 2015 at Brentwood Assisted Living following a brief illness.

He was born on Friday, February 13, 1948 in Niles to Norman C. and Charlotte J. (Wise) Willis. He was graduated from Niles High School, and earned a Bachelors degree in Mathematics from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He joined the United States Army, serving in the Signal Corps in Viet Nam to install local PBX telecommunications systems as command posts moved forward. He completed three years of service, and was a Veteran of the Viet Nam Era.

In civilian service, he was first employed while in school at the former Niles plant of the Simplicity Pattern Company, and later provided Information Technology services for the former Niles Kawneer plant, and for the Whirlpool Corporation. In ‘retirement’ he was employed at the Halbritter Funeral Home and MDS Priority Delivery Service, and taught in the Fab Lab at Lake Michigan College and Niles High School.

John was a long-time member of the Wesley United Methodist Church in Niles where he served in many different roles. He was a 34 year perfect attendence member of the Niles Noon Optimist Club where he served as a past president, a past Lieutenant District Governor, directed the Youth Soccer Program, and organized the race timing team. He was also an active member of the Alpha Kappa Lambda fraternity, and was a regular attender of retiree events from both Kawneer and Whirlpool.

He had a broad range of interests including philately (stamp collecting), and collecting recorded music which also allowed him to win many on-air radio contests. He read books – often several in a week – which covered a wide variety of interests. His ability to retain all that he read lead him to be a trivia champion, and a producer of trivia events. He was also a technical artist, using the capabilities of the Fab Lab to recreate highly detailed scale models of various buildings, trains, and planes.

John’s greatest joy was sharing his interests with others, and learning from them. He was most satisfied helping youth – soccer players, home school groups, students and others – achieve successes.

He is survived by his brothers, James B. (& Kathy) Willis, Jeffrey C. Willis, and Jerry D. (& Cheryl) Willis, all of Niles; nieces and nephews Sonja (& Shawn Wregglesworth) Lenox, Abby (& Corey) Feitzek, Joshua (& Jaclyn) Willis, Paul, Benjamin, Zachary, Samuel, and Travis Willis, and Ryne (& Ashley) Willis; an aunt, Norma Mark of Edwardsburg, Michigan; and an amazing circle of friends including Sue (& Bob) Phillips.

The funeral service for John Willis will be at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, September 24, 2015 at Wesley United Methodist Church with the Rev. Cathi Huvaere, pastor of the church officiating. Committal will follow at Mission Hills, and will conclude with the Veteran’s Flag Presentation and “Taps” by the United States Army Honor Guard.

The family will receive relatives and friends on Wednesday from 2:00 until 4:00 and 6:00 until 8:00 p.m. at the Halbritter Funeral Home in Niles. Contributions in memory of John Willis may be made to the Wesley United Methodist Church, or to the Niles Noon Optimist Club, or to Hospice at Home.

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