In Memory
Anita J. Lutes
Feb. 6, 1931 - Jun. 17, 2013
GRANGER - Anita J. "Nita" Lutes, 82, of Granger, passed away peacefully at home on Monday, June 17, 2013.
Nita was born at the home of her parents, Elmer H. and Anna C. (Wishart) Kendall. Their house was located at the intersection of Cleveland Road and Edwardsburg Highway, now known as State Road 23, the site of the Emeritus at Arborwood. Elmer and Anna would later move to property farther down State Road 23 and raise their family in a house adjacent to their business, Granger Grain and Feed store, expanding it later to include Dollar Stretcher Hardware store.
A graduate of Washington Clay High School, class of 1948, Nita was presented with her engagement ring the night of her senior prom by James Melvin "Mel" Lane Lutes. They wed on May 15, 1949, at the First Presbyterian Church Mishawaka. Although Nita was a member of the Granger Presbyterian Church, it did not have an ordained minister on staff at the time, which necessitated the use of an alternate church.
Mel and Nita raised four children, all of whom are surviving: Steve (Sharon) of Dowagiac, Michigan, Linda (Jim) Hallagan of Bloomington, Indiana, Nanette (Ken) Pigaga of Ridgewood, New Jersey, and Bettina (Brian) DePew of Garrett, Indiana. Also surviving are grandchildren: Ty (Jessica) Lutes of Warrenville, Illinois, Cailee Lutes of Niles, Michigan, Anna Hallagan of Cincinnati, Ohio, Ian Hallagan of Bloomington, Indiana, Caitlin (John) Jennings of Brooklyn, New York, Conor Pigaga of Santa Barbara, California, and Zackary DePew of Bloomington, Indiana; and great-grandchild, Marisa Lutes of Warrenville, Illinois. Additionally surviving are a brother, Paul, of Granger, Indiana, and a sister, Jeanette (Edward) Prough, of Desert Hot Springs, California. Besides her husband, Mel, and her parents, she was preceded in death by her brother, Donald Kendall, of Avon Park, Florida.
A transfer for Mel's career in 1972 took him and Nita from their lifelong home in Indiana to Omaha, Nebraska, for a time. They were happy to return to Indiana and lived in Fort Wayne for 25 years. Upon retiring, they returned to their roots and settled in Granger. Nita was a woman of many talents who possessed boundless energy. An avid gardener, seamstress and lover of birds, she worked out of the home demo-ing food products in grocery stores, was later employed as a dental receptionist, and then turned to the wallpaper business, in which she was self-employed for 23 years.
She was a member of the Washington Clay Alumni Committee and enjoyed their monthly breakfasts. Friends and family may visit on Saturday, June 22, 2013, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Bubb Funeral Chapel, 3910 North Main Street, Mishawaka. Funeral services will be held at Bubb Funeral Chapel immediately after viewing hours. Burial will follow at St. Joseph Valley Memorial Park in Granger. Officiating will be a relative, Reverend Brenda Gordon of Empire United Methodist Church, Empire, Indiana.
In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial contributions be made to the Zeleny Endowment Fund of the North American Blue Bird Society, P. O. Box 7844, Bloomington, Indiana 47407, or the Center for Hospice Care, 111 Sunnybrook Court, South Bend, Indiana 46637.
Published in South Bend Tribune on June 19, 2013.
08/30/2022 DEC
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