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Helen Kirk Walsh Wright
Longtime Grosse Pointe resident Helen Kirk Walsh Wright died Friday, Oct. 12, 2001, at Bon Secours Nursing Facility in St. Clair Shores.
Mrs. Wright was born in Ypsilanti in 1902. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in Terre Haute, Ind., in 1922.
In 1923, she married
Clune J. Walsh and moved to Detroit, where they resided on Second Boulevard on a site now occupied by the McGregor Conference Center of Wayne State University.
That same year, Mrs. Wright began her volunteer career at the Father Weinman Settlement. She also took part in organizing the Junior Group of the League of Catholic Women.
When her children were safely launched in school, Mrs. Wright was enlisted as a captain in the Community Fund Campaign and moved on to take charge of general solicitation in the metropolitan Detroit area.
During World War II, Mrs. Wright was the first layman ever to be in charge of nurse recruitment for the American Red Cross, procuring all the nurses for the armed services.
She later took a job with the Central Volunteer Bureau, a placement agency for volunteers. In 1952, Mrs. Wright enrolled in Wayne State University where she received her master's degree in social work.
After graduation, she took a job with Catholic Charities specializing in child welfare cases.
Mrs. Wright was also very active in her parish communities. At the time of her death, she was a 30-year member of St. Lucy Parish in St. Clair Shores.
Widowed in 1958, she married
Dr. Carroll S. Wright of Philadelphia, Pa., in 1967. She moved from Grosse Pointe Park to that city, only to return after his death that same year.
Since then, she has resided in St. Clair Shores, most recently at Bon Secours Nursing Facility.
Mrs. Wright was an avid reader and an expert needle woman and bridge player.
According to her family, when asked to what she attributed her long life Mrs. Wright always replied, "Faith, family and friends."
Survivors include her daughter, Marianna Sterr, two sons, Clune J. Walsh Jr. and B. Kirk Walsh of Washington, D.C.; 19 grandchildren and 32 great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her daughter Helen Berns.
A memorial Mass is scheduled for 11 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 20, at St. Lucy Church, 23401 Jefferson in St. Clair Shores.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Henry Ford, 23000 Mack Avenue, St. Clair Shores, MI 48080 and St. Lucy Church, 23401 Jefferson Avenue, St. Clair Shores, MI 48080.
Shirley Callahan
Shirley Callahan loved to dance.
She was light on her feet, and when she stood up in her cousin's wedding she noticed that a groomsman, James, looked like he might be a pretty good dancer, too.
The pair made eye contact and by the time they reached the Polish Century Club for the reception, Shirley and James had extricated themselves from their escorts and danced all night.
Their romance, that began to the strains of "Strangers in the Night," ended on Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2001, when Mrs. Callahan died of ovarian cancer at her home in the City of Grosse Pointe. She was 58.
"Shirley never wanted to be the first one on the dance floor," James Callahan said, "but if 'In the Mood' came on she'd get out there immediately and we'd jitterbug. We recently were in South Carolina and that song came on after dinner and after we danced we got a huge round of applause."
"In the Mood" was the song that played as Mrs. Callahan's coffin was carried out of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Detroit.
When she married
James in June of 1968, Mrs. Callahan was a group chief supervisor at Michigan Bell. She stayed with the company until her first child, Michael, arrived in 1974, when she became a homemaker. The couple's second child, Kate, came in 1979. In 1985 Mrs. Callahan decided to re-enroll at Wayne State University, where she previously had taken classes.
She received her bachelor's degree in 1993 from the College of Liberal Arts, and was inducted into the University's chapter of Golden Key National Honor Society and Mortarboard Society. She also worked in the University's Department of Geography and Urban Planning.
A treasured volunteer for many organizations, Mrs. Callahan chaired the Grosse Pointe chapter of Women of Wayne and was active at St. Charles as a Eucharistic minister and Bible School tutor. She enlisted the help of her son, Michael, in setting up a children's computer lab there.
"She did it so kids who didn't have access to computers would have a place to come and get acquainted with how they work and use them," Michael Callahan said. "She procured the computers from various sources and we cannibalized them so we could put together working machines.
"My mom had a way of making people who didn't really know her feel like they'd known her for years," he said. "She was legitimately interested in other people. It didn't matter what it wasÑif her kids or someone from her family was doing something, she was interested. And if you'd let her, she'd be involved, too."
In addition to her husband and two children, Mrs. Callahan is survived by her sisters Judith Lowen and Dorothy Strzelewicz; a brother Edward Malik; close friend Geraldine Raszkowski and many nieces and nephews.
Memorial contributions can be sent to St. Charles Children's Education Fund, St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, 1491 Baldwin, Detroit, MI 48214.
Clara L. Hamel
Clara L. Hamel, 94, died on Monday, Nov. 19, 2001, at the Bon Secours Nursing Center in St. Clair Shores.
Born and educated in the Netherlands, Mrs. Hamel came to the United States at the age of 23.
Mrs. Hamel lived in Grosse Pointe Park for 35 years. She was a homemaker who enjoyed gardening, travel and maintained a life-long interest in her Dutch heritage.
She was a faithful member of St. Paul Catholic Church in Grosse Pointe Farms and also belonged to Bayview Yacht Club.
Mrs. Hamel is survived by her son John (Marlene) Hamel; grandchildren Lee Ann (Larry) Mueller, Lynn Hamel, Leslie Hamel (Hal Henn) and great-grandchildren Rachel, Tom and Matthew. She was predeceased by her husband Cornelius Hamel and her daughter Mary Ann Hashimi.
Arrangements were handled by A. H. Peters Funeral Home of Grosse Pointe Woods. A memorial Mass was celebrated on Friday, Nov. 23, at St. Paul Catholic Church. Interment is at the St. Paul's columbarium.
Memorial contributions may be made to the charity of your choice.
Jean Speicher Lyons
Grosse Pointe Park resident Jean Speicher Lyons, 85, died on Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2001, at the St. John Senior Community in Detroit.
She was a graduate of the Bangor High School in Bangor, Mich., and Western Michigan University.
Mrs. Lyons retired as manager of the Open Book Store in Utica. She was an active volunteer with the University of Michigan Hospital and Grosse Pointe United Church and a member of Gablots.
Mrs. Lyons is survived by her sons John Speicher and James Speicher; her daughter Anne Speicher and her sister Ruth Snider; nine grandchildren and five step-grandchildren and two great-grandchildren and 2 step-great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by her husbands Harold Speicher and Wendell Lyons and her sister Marjorie Zook.
Arrangements were handled by the Verheyden Funeral Home in Grosse Pointe Park. A memorial service will be held in the spring of 2002. Interment is at White Chapel cemetery in Troy. Memorial gifts may be made to the Grosse Pointe United Church or St. John Senior Community.
Jadwiga M. Przyluski
Jadwiga M. Przyluski of Grosse Pointe Farms died of a cerebral hemorrhage on Friday, Nov. 23, 2001, at St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit.
Mrs. Przyluski was a member of the Detroit Institute of Arts Founders Society.
She is survived by her brother Jan Krasinski. She was predeceased by her husband Francis Przyluski, her brother Adam Krasinski and her sister Isabella Solyga.
Arrangements are being handled by the Verheyden Funeral Home in Grosse Pointe Park. A memorial service will be held on Monday, Dec. 3, at 11 a.m., at St. Paul Catholic Church, 157 Lakeshore Road in Grosse Pointe Farms.
Dr. F. Mullen Barrett
Former Grosse Pointe Farms resident Dr. F. Mullen Barrett, 80, of St. Clair Shores, passed away on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2002.
Born in Detroit in 1922, Dr. Barrett graduated with honors from the University of Detroit School of Dentistry in 1945.
He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II.
Dr. Barrett practiced dentistry in Detroit and then in Grosse Pointe until his retirement in 1986.
He was a fellow in the Academy of General Dentistry and past president of the Federation of Orthodontic Associations.
He was on the faculty of the University of Detroit Dental School for most of his career and traveled extensively learning and teaching continuing education for dentists.
Dr. Barrett enjoyed tennis, boating and music. He had a farm in Michigan's thumb and a winter home in Naples, Fla.
He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Nancy Marie (Tapert) Barrett; his children, Mary Lou (Mike) Dunipace, Patrick (Barb), Dan (Beth), Maureen (Mark) King, Brian, Anne Mangold, Tom (Anne), Peter (Carol) and Nancy (Jim) Willis; and his 23 grandchildren.
A memorial Mass was celebrated on Saturday, Nov. 2 at St. Paul Catholic Church in Grosse Pointe Farms.
Interment is in St. Paul's Columbarium.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Capuchin Soup Kitchen or the University of Detroit Jesuit High School.
