June Caldwell Hawthorne

June Caldwell Hawthorne, 92, daughter and only child of James and Beulah (Goodrich) Caldwell, died of complications relating to Alzheimer’s disease, on Sept. 22, 2015, at Mallard Cove assisted living, in Petoskey, Mich.June was born on Sept. 14, 1923, in Battle Creek, Mich., where she attended public schools, before earning higher education degrees at Western Michigan, in Kalamazoo, and at the University of Michigan. One of her “weekend-home” memories during WWII was of time spent on USO duty for troops training at Fort Custer, in Battle Creek. She became quite an adept pool player, a well-hidden, non-intellectual skill, which later surprised and amazed her sons. It was in Ann Arbor, while completing an academic-honors fellowship in the graduate library program, that she met a U.S. Navy veteran, Frank W. Hawthorne, Sr., whom she married in 1948. They had three children —Martha, Frank, and James —and later divorced.She was preceded in death by her daughter, and is survived by two sons, Frank (Dottie) Hawthorne, of Petoskey; and Jamie (Sally) Hawthorne, of Kalamazoo. Also surviving are her two grandchildren, Simon Hawthorne, of Duluth, Minn.; and Lydia Hawthorne, of Chicago, Ill.; plus step-grandson USMC Sgt. Daniel (Leigh) English, of Elizabeth City, NC., and his family.June lived in a number of other Michigan communities, including Lansing, Durand, Tecumseh, Laurium, and Houghton. She also spent a year after college in Oklahoma, two years in New York City, and spent a memorable year in Battle, Sussex, England. For much of her married life, June lived, and worked as a French language teacher, in Tecumseh, Mich., and at the Boysville (Order of Holy Cross) school in Macon. She also served as a librarian at Adrian College; and — soon after moving in 1972 with her husband, the Rev. Hawthorne, to the Upper Peninsula — she began working in the J. Robert Van Pelt Library, at Michigan Technological University.She had a distinguished career there, enjoyed time with many colleagues and friends, and retired as Documents and Maps Librarian in 1993. June kept in touch with many, via pen, note card, and the U.S. mails. When June’s health issues became debilitating, she moved to Minnesota in 2006 to be near her son Frank and family. She lived happily at the Madonna Living Center, in Rochester, till moving to Mallard Cove, in Petoskey, in the summer of 2015. June’s family is grateful for the attentive, compassionate care she received from staff of both the Madonna and Mallard Cove communities. Family will remember June for her positive spirit, and many acts of love and support to them over time. When Martha, her eldest child, was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, she uncomplainingly undertook primary care and support for many years. She had a fine intellect, was a voracious reader (especially of mysteries, histories, and political biography), and was a proud, longtime volunteer in the League of Women Voters. June’s own lifelong support of progressive causes and candidates began in 1944 with a ballot cast for FDR, and ended in 2012 when she voted for Pres. Obama.Though of modest means, June was a generous donor to her favorite churches and charities. A lifelong Episcopalian, June faithfully attended and volunteered in many of the parishes where she lived, including Trinity Church, Houghton. Though as an independent spirit — who loved to walk, and who, by choice, went without a car for many years — her beloved friends were of great help, comfort, and assistance.A memorial service for June Hawthorne, who was cremated, will take place at 2:00 p.m. on Sat., October 3rd, in the columbarium chapel of Emmanuel Episcopal Church, in Petoskey. Memorial gifts may be directed to Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn., for Alzheimer’s research.

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