Sunday, January 5, 1941

A BEAUTIFUL DAY FOR CALLING ON FRIENDS AND FAMILY

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Another beautiful sunny

day.

Went to church, then

went to Wingeier's for

dinner. Shirley Groff and

wife there too.

After dinner all went to

Jen's. Lyd staying with

Jen until Liza comes

back.

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Jen and Lydia are Henry's sisters. I wasn't sure who Liza was so I spent a bit of time on the phone with my dad trying to figure it out. At first we thought maybe Liza was Lydia's daughter Eleanor Elizabeth. But then I found the South Bowne News in the Lowell Ledger for the first week in January 1941, which (other than getting Henry's name wrong) matches up with Edna's journal entry.

The Johnsons, Wingeiers and Groffs all call on Jennie Pardee (Henry's sister).

The day prior, Alden Porritt (Lydia's son), his wife and daughters called on Jennie and Lydia.

One of Alden's daughters was named Elizabeth.

I am making a leap here, but I think she may have been the Liza in question.

That sent me on a search for information about Elizabeth Porritt. When I discovered her obituary and read her story, I fell in love.

What struck me most (aside from that fact that she looks like a movie star) is that Elizabeth, whom I never met, passed away in 2014 in Ann Arbor, Michigan ...just a few short miles from my home.

Elizabeth Porritt Palmer may or may not be the Liza in question but her story is worth sharing.

In addition to Elizabeth's obituary, I found a story in a local paper (The Belleville Independent) dated one year after Elizabeth's death detailing the story of her family and an experience shared between her husband Ken and her son.

Elizabeth Porritt Palmer

June 02, 1924 - July 22, 2014 Surely there was much celebration in heaven on Tuesday, July 22, 2014 as our Lord welcomed Elizabeth Palmer home. As we celebrate her life amidst broken hearts, her family takes solace in the profound impact our sweet wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt and friend has had on each one of us. Elizabeth was born in Alto, Michigan on June 2, 1924, the middle child of two older brothers and 2 younger sisters. She graduated from Caledonia High School in 1942 and then as a Registered Nurse from Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1945. Her desire to help the fighting men and women returning from World War II soon took her to Tucson, Arizona where she accepted a job at the Veterans Hospital. It is there she met the love of her life, Kenneth Palmer, a young Navy man from Mason, Michigan. After a brief courtship, Elizabeth and Ken were married in 1950. Soon after they made their home in Belleville and raised five children: Vicki, Dan, Cynthia, Brian, and Kim. Although Elizabeth’s nursing career was put on hold once she and Ken started a family, she never lost her innate desire for serving others. She was a dedicated volunteer to their church of 50+ years and fulfilled many leadership roles in UMW. Elizabeth was one of the sweetest, kindest, most gentle souls ever to grace the earth. Her highest priority was her relationship with Jesus Christ, followed by the love she had for her family. She never uttered an unkind word about anyone, and had the rare ability to make each person in her life feel like they were uniquely special and important to her. Elizabeth’s laugh was contagious, and her sense of humor put people immediately at ease. Among her many talents and interests, she loved to garden and do needlework the most, as was evident in her beautiful flower beds and masterpieces she proudly displayed in the Palmer home. Elizabeth’s love of the outdoors has been passed down through the generations, along with her affinity for all creatures great and small. Elizabeth is survived by her loving husband of 64 years, Kenneth, and their children: Vicki (Terry) Bower, Daniel (Wilhelmina) Palmer, Cynthia (John) Fletcher, Brian (Mary) Palmer and Kim (Ed) Paris. She is also survived by her eight grandchildren and three great-grandchildren: Allisyn (Justin) Wheeler and daughter Leighton, Erica (VJ Goichai) Bower and son Greyson, Jonathan (Tamara) Palmer and son Jonathan Jr., Michael (Andrea) Palmer, Julia Palmer, Alexandra Palmer, Ben Palmer and Laenie Fletcher. Elizabeth also leaves behind her sister Marilyn Johnson and many nieces and nephews. She is preceded in death by her brothers Albert and Marvin and her sister Martha.