Heath Funeral Chapel

Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, John Michael Fico passed away on October 24, 2023, in his Auburndale, Florida home. A graduate of John Marshall High School in Milwaukee, John graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in 1982 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology. He was a 2002 MSOE graduate, earning a Master of Science degree in Engineering Management. John was a dedicated engineer, and later program manager at Rockwell Automation in Milwaukee for nearly 20 years. In retirement, John was an adjunct professor at Florida Polytechnic University, and an Amsoil dealer. He enjoyed amateur radio, Legos, working with tools, mowing the lawn, and riding his bicycle....

Talk to people who knew UK Custred well and you'll hear different starting points for describing the man who entered eternal rest on October 15, 2023, at the age of 94. Some begin with his faith, others his intelligence. Still others start by referencing his kindness and love for others. And some speak initially of his generosity, the countless times he gave while insisting those gifts remained anonymous. The Rev. Dr. Riley P. Short, who served both as senior pastor and interim senior pastor at UK's beloved church, First United Methodist of Lakeland, sums it up succinctly. "A brilliant man," Short said. "A faith filled man. He served in almost every leadership position in our church. He...

Ruth Ann Bickel (n?e Weldele), 90, of Lakeland, FL, passed away on October 11, 2023. Ruth was born in Saint Louis, MO, and lived in Green Cove Springs, FL, prior to moving to Lakeland, FL, to be near her family. Ruth was preceded in death by her husband, John, of 68 years. She is survived by her daughters, Deborah Daniels (Ken) and Patricia Bazley (Robert), and son, John Bickel (Johanna), four grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren. Ruth retired from the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Courts in Clay County, FL, where she was an Administrative Assistant. Ruth enjoyed reading, gardening, and crossword puzzles. In her youth, she was active in her...

Ruth Ann Bickel (n?e Weldele), 90, of Lakeland, FL, passed away on October 11, 2023. Ruth was born in Saint Louis, MO, and lived in Green Cove Springs, FL, prior to moving to Lakeland, FL, to be near her family. Ruth was preceded in death by her husband, John, of 68 years. She is survived by her daughters, Deborah Daniels (Ken) and Patricia Bazley (Robert), and son, John Bickel (Johanna), four grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren. Ruth retired from the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Courts in Clay County, FL, where she was an Administrative Assistant. Ruth enjoyed reading, gardening, and crossword puzzles. In her youth, she was active in her...

Merlin (Mike) Goldsmith passed away peacefully in his Florida home Sunday morning October 1, 2023, surrounded by his family. He was born in Spring Arbor, Michigan and a graduate of Spring Arbor College earning his bachelor's degree. Mike was a veteran of the National Guard. He was active in the Spring Arbor Free Methodist Church. Mike served as Spring Arbor Township Supervisor after retiring from Aeroquip Aerospace division as a controller. He was an avid collector of automobile memorabilia and auction and garage sale enthusiast. Mike is survived by his wife, A. Elaine of 68 years, sister, Ruth Leonard; brother, Bob Goldsmith; 2 daughters, Linda Burns (Paul), Cindy Goldsmith Steele...

Barbara Marie (Staney) Ouellette, 79, of Polk City, FL and Worcester, MA, passed away peacefully on August 31, 2023, at the Highlands Lake Center Nursing Home in Lakeland FL after a short illness. Barbara was born on January 20, 1944, in Worcester Mass. to Joseph & Mary (Selius) Staney. She is survived by her husband of 57 years, Leo; her daughter Cheryl (Ouellette) Lambert, her husband William and their sons, Michael & Joshua; her son Brian Ouellette, his partner Keri Mitchell and their children Megan, Jordan, and Jake. She also leaves her brothers Joseph (Corey), Robert (Mary) and James (Sandra) Staney and her sister Kathy Bender (James); her sisters-in-law, Lorraine Plonski,...

James "Jim" D. Hardee, Jr., 66 years old, passed away August 30, 2023. For the Full obituary go to www.heathfuneralchapel.com.

Ann Fitzpatrick Trottier, 83, of Lakeland, Florida passed away peacefully on Saturday, May 27, 2023, at the Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center. She was born on July 27, 1939, to James and Harriet Fitzpatrick. She graduated from Mount St. Mary's, Cathedral Grammar School and the first graduating class of Rice Memorial High School in 1959. She worked at The Bishop DeGoesbriand Hospital and the Burlington Health and Rehab Center for many years before retiring in 2005. Ann was preceded in death by her son, Timothy James Trottier in 1986, sister-in-law, Katherine Fitzpatrick in 1996; brothers, James E Fitzpatrick in 2005, and John C Fitzpatrick in 2009; brother-in-law, Eugene Kerby in...

Dr. Joseph Charles Belshe filed his final flight plan in the evening of May 21, 2023, on his journey to collect his reward for a life filled with love and service to others. There, to see him off, were his wife and three close friends. He died from complications of a stroke at the age of 102. A memorial service for Joseph will be held on Thursday, June 15, 2023, at 2:00 pm at First Presbyterian Church 175 Lake Hollingsworth Drive, Lakeland, FL 33801. A reception will be held after the service with light refreshments served. Joseph was born on January 9, 1921, to Charles and Helen Belshe in Cement, OK. The family eventually made their way to Northfield, MN. He excelled academically and...

Donna Mae Joyce Novak, 90, of Lakeland, Florida, died on January 22, 2023, at Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center, in Lakeland. She was born to parents Fannie and James Halverson, on December 11, 1932, in their rural home in Arland Township, Wisconsin, and the youngest of six children. Life was quite different than today's world. The whole family worked on the farm doing the chores that needed to be done. They moved, in later years, to a larger farm purchased from her grandparents. Donna walked a rural road to a one-room schoolhouse for the first eight grades, then rode a bus to high school. She always had a lot of friends and would often bring one home to her already overworked mother...

James (Jim) Bough passed away peacefully in Lakeland Florida on January 4, 2023. Jim was a dedicated husband for 62 years, who always put his wife first and loved his children and grandchildren with everything he had. He served his country and his church and was beloved by all who knew him. Jim is survived by his wife Lois and four children Suzette (Danny) Welling, Jamie (Patty) Bough, Matt Bough, and Dan (Tina) Bough. He is also survived by his 5 grandchildren Ryan Sullivan, Jason Sullivan, Nicholas Bough, Caelan Bough, and Annabelle Bough and predeceased by his granddaughter Katie Sullivan. Memorial services for Jim Bough will be held at 2:00 PM, Sunday, January 15, 2023, at St....

Sharon Jean Stotts of Lakeland, FL passed away at the age of 75 on December 30, 2022, at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL after a prolonged and courageous battle with ALS. Her husband and three of her children were by her side. Sharon was born in Pittsburg, KS and raised within a large family in a very small Weir, KS before marrying her high school sweetheart and starting a family. As a retailer's wife, she moved often in the early years across Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Sharon and her family settled in Lakeland, FL in 1985. She was a homemaker, devoted wife for 58 years, loving mother, grandmother (Grammie!), sister, aunt, and friend to everyone she met. Above all,...

Catherine E. Shea passed away on Thursday, December 22, 2022. She was born on June 16, 1927, in Glens Falls, NY to Margaret and Charles Doty. Catherine loved to decorate and furnish dollhouses. She owned CES Collectables and Miniatures for many years in New York. She was preceded in death by her parents, Margaret and Charles Doty; her husband, Charles Shea; and her sons, Charles and John Hughto. Catherine is survived by her son, Eugene (Alesa) Hughto; daughter-in-law, Joanne Hughto; her grandchildren, Kathryn Brown (Aaron), Alana Barone (John), and Io Hughto (Coral); great grandchildren, John and Miles Brown and Sebastian Barone. Interment will be at a later date at the Union Cemetery in...

We mournfully announce the unexpected passing of Ed R. Vaia, 59, of Tampa, FL on December 5, 2022. Ed was born in Newark OH. He moved to Florida during his teen years and graduated from Brandon High School in 1982. He continued his education at ITT Technical Institute where he received an Associate's degree in Electronics Engineering. He enjoyed his job as an Electronics Technician in the Aerospace Division of Honeywell Corporation in Clearwater FL. Ed is survived by his mother, Doris Crosby; stepfather, Harley Crosby; his two stepsisters, Stephanie Gates (Mike), Jeannette Woodruff (Ken); and his nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his father Don Vaia. He is also survived by his...

Lourdes Limcaco Tolentino Percentie passed away on Saturday November 26, 2022. She was born in Manila, Philippines on February 8, 1959. In 1970, she moved with her family from the Philippines to Boston, Massachusetts. She attended Duke and Northeastern Universities and received a master's degree from MIT. A longtime resident of Freeport, Bahamas, she is credited as being one of the IT pioneers on Grand Bahama, training most government officials, the Grand Bahama Port Authority, and private businesses on the island at the Computer Service and Training computer school. After graduating from MIT, she continued her entrepreneurial career with a Japanese software localization startup Boston...

Fred "Freddie" Steel sadly passed away on June 10, 2022, in Lakeland FL. Jackson High School basketball state champion starter, University of Michigan graduate, U.S. Marine, Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. plant manager, proud father of 3 beautiful daughters, model grandfather of 6 exceptional grandchildren, scratch golfer, professional fisherman, savvy gambler, and the life of the party. These are the stories he told. His heartbroken high school sweetheart and trophy wife of 62 years, Judy, can now tell you the truth. Donations can be made to Retrieving Independence Service Dogs (riservicedogs.org) or Operation 300 (op300.org). Condolences may be sent to the family at...

Lakeland - Dorothy Schoener Holmes, 80, passed away on Monday, May 16, 2022. She was born in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania on September 17, 1941, to the late Charles and Martha Schoener. A memorial service will be held on Monday, May 23, 2022, at 10:00 am at Florida Presbyterian Homes Chapel, 16 Lake Hunter Drive, Lakeland, Florida 33803. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.heathfuneralchapel.com.

Loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend passed away on April 25, 2022. Jo Ann was born to Lawrence Henry and JoHanna Heggie Smith Siebers on November 20, 1935. JoAnn was raised in Tooele, UT and attended schools there through high school. She then attended Utah State University and graduated with a degree in Journalism. She met John David Rice there and they married shortly after graduation. She began her writing career at the Salt Lake Tribune as an advice columnist under the pseudonym "Dear Debbie". John and Jo Ann graduated together from Utah State. John's U.S. Air Force career took them to Texas, California, Alaska, and Maryland. Jo Ann taught school on the Air...

Loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend passed away on April 25, 2022. Jo Ann was born to Lawrence Henry and JoHanna Heggie Smith Siebers on November 20, 1935. JoAnn was raised in Tooele, UT and attended schools there through high school. She then attended Utah State University and graduated with a degree in Journalism. She met John David Rice there and they married shortly after graduation. She began her writing career at the Salt Lake Tribune as an advice columnist under the pseudonym "Dear Debbie". John and Jo Ann graduated together from Utah State. John's U.S. Air Force career took them to Texas, California, Alaska, and Maryland. Jo Ann taught school on the Air...

Emagene "Genie" Kennan Honerkamp, aged 78, died in Singapore on 24 April 2022 after a struggle with dementia. She was a joyful, fun-loving grandmother who dearly loved her family and friends. She will be remembered for her kind and gracious southern manners, dry sense of humor, and deep love for her family. Born 25 September 1943 to Robert and Minnie Smith Kennan in Raleigh, North Carolina, Genie grew up in Edenton and graduated from Princess Anne High School in Virginia Beach, VA and Norfolk Business College. She moved to Atlanta in 1970 to work for Delta Air Lines and married her husband Marion in 1971. In recent years, she enjoyed traveling in Europe and Asia, visiting Italy, France,...

Ruth "Alberta" (Studebaker) Russell, 101, passed away at Lakeland Regional Hospital in Lakeland, Florida on April 2, 2022. She was born on July 13, 1920, in Delaware County, Indiana to Walter & Grace Studebaker. She graduated from Royerton High School, Delaware Co in 1938. On June 10, 1978, she married Charles O Russell who preceded her in death on Jan 23, 2001. She had worked at H.L. Green Co in Muncie IN, Delaware Co Dept of Public Welfare, J.F. Brewer Accounting and retired in 1981 as Office Manager for The Lions Club Delaware County Fair, Inc., Muncie, IN. She was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Lakeland, FL. Where she was a past member of the Cathedral Choir and...