William J. Grant
Died September 9, 2013
BINGHAM TOWNSHIP – William John Grant, 68, of Bingham
Township, passed away Monday, Sept. 9, 2013 at his home surrounded by his
loving family.
In June 1965 Bill
was drafted into the US Army and spent 1½ years in Vietnam and was sent home
with a Purple Heart, Combat Infantryman Badge and several other honors.
After returning home
Bill married the true love of his life, Diane L. Skowronski of Suttons Bay in
St. Michael’s Church in Suttons Bay on Oct. 26, 1968.
During these years
together Bill and Diane started many successful businesses. Their first business together was
Grant’s
Ariel Bucket Service in 1977. Later that
year they added the stump removal
service.
In the summer of 79’ they sold the ariel bucket service to Leonardo’s
Tree
Service, with the stump removal business still running strong.
During the many years of the stump removal
service Bill’s love the Whopper at Burger King grew! Bill could pull into any Burger King in
Traverse City with the big red truck and they would have his order ready for
him!
At the same time of
running the stump removal service, Bill and two of his brothers, with the help
of Michigan State University, invented a mechanical strawberry harvester. Bill and Diane had the strawberry farm until
the construction of Veronica Valley Golf Course in the summer of 1987. Bill and Diane with the help of family and
friends opened Veronica Valley in the spring of 1991. Bill loved to “run away” from the hustle and
bustle and spend time with his family having picnics at the cabin.
In 2004 Bill and
Diane decided to close the golf course because the Parkinson’s Disease was
making it too difficult for Bill to work.
Bill enjoyed working
with his son, Jeremy and their team of draft horses, wood carving and spending
his birthday with his grandkids at “the ocean” aka Peterson Park in Northport. As his Parkinson’s Disease progressed he
loved golf cart rides with “his queen”.
All of his life,
Bill loved the company of family and friends.
In his last days, Bill was able to enjoy family picnics, a trip to the
“ocean” and one final hayride.
Bill is survived by
his wife, Diane; his children, Melissa Grant, Rachel (Jim) Plamondon, Jeremy
(Anne) Grant, Melanie (Pat) Herman; a sister in law Phyllis Grant; siblings
James (Dorothy) Grant, Mary (Jerome) Kolarik, Jane (Dick) Strang, Matt (Jolie)
Grant, Joe (Laurie) Grant, Monica (Larry) Cornell, Ann Hohl; seven
grandchildren, Tate Wilson, William Grant, Leah Plamondon, Lucas Plamondon,
Garrett Grant, Lily Herman and Kenneth Grant.
He was preceded in
death by his parents, a brother, David; and a brother in law, William Hohl.
Visitation will be
held from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sep. 12 with the Rosary to be prayed at 7
p.m. at St. Mary’s Church of Lake Leelanau.
The mass will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, Sep. 13 with visitation one
hour prior to the mass, also at the church.
Burial will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery. Father Michael Janowski will serve as
celebrant.
Memorials may be
directed to St. Mary School, c/o Guardian Angel Program, PO Box 340, Lake
Leelanau, MI, 49653; Grand Traverse Area Parkinson’s Support Group (GTAP), 10049
E. Grandview Ct, Traverse City, MI, 49684-5307 and/or Mass Intentions.
Please share memories with Bill’s family at the online obituary at
www.martinson.info.
Arrangements are with the Martinson Funeral Home of Suttons Bay.
So sorry to hear of Bill's passing. He helped me so many times over the years with pulling and grinding so many stumps and cutting trees on my property. He will be greatly missed by the community at Lake Leelanau. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this difficult time.
ReplyDeleteMr & Mrs. Vern Darlington Jr
S. Skeba Rd. S.
Lake Leelanau, MI
Bill was one of the kindest and happiest people I've ever met. I have so many memories of him coming to basketball games and cheering us on. He always had kind and encouraging words after the game and I felt like he was one of my biggest fans. I cannot remember a time when I saw him and he did not have a big grin on his face from ear to ear. He was truly an angel sent from God and my heart is heavy with sorrow in hearing of his passing. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him and my prayers are with all of his friends and family during this difficult time.
ReplyDeleteMegan Grant
Austin, TX
I am truly sorry to hear about Bill’s passing. He was a very kind and gentle man. I remember him fondly from my child hood years. I will always remember when he would put his arm around me with a smile just to say hi. He always reminded me of my father (Willard Korson). When I think of Bill, I can’t help but to think of my father. He will be truly missed. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of his family during this difficult time.
ReplyDeleteCristy Mannor (Korson)
Tulsa, OK
What a joyful account of Bill's life! It's wonderful that he could do so many things he enjoyed just shortly before his death. That's quite a tribute to a loving wife and family. We have a few memories of Bill shared with us by our boys and, of course, through knowing him. He was a special person. We're sorry that we can't be there to pay him tribute but our thoughts and prayers are with you all. We know Bill is having a BIG time in a happy place!
ReplyDeleteGeorge and Kitty Zink
Anderson, IN
I worked for Bill as a greenskeeper the first year Veronica Valley was open. It was a gamble for Bill and Diane to hire me as I am not a very skilled person; or rather, I didn't have a lot of the skills necessary for me to be a great greenskeeper right away. Looking back on it, despite my best efforts, I was kind of a screw up. I had to learn a lot about operating different kinds of machinery, and to this day I am a little jealous that Jeremy could back up a trailer before he even had a driver's license. (I still can't back up a trailer to this day.) All told, I may have actually created more work for Bill and Steve.
ReplyDeleteYet he always stuck with me, never gave up on me and never fired me. His compassion was a modest, quiet one that was expressed in smiles and day-to-day unseen acts of kindness. The conversations we had in that red truck on the occasions I got to go out on "stumpin' jobs" are unforgettable to me. There was a warmth to those talks that comes right back to me every time I think of them. There were vast amounts of wisdom (and great stories!) in Bill.
Bill has taught me many things; usually by example and more than words. The greatest thing he has taught me is that there is no such thing as a small act of kindness. His compassion for his fellow human beings is only exceeded by his skills with a chain saw.*
You will be missed, Bill.
Matt Zink
Bloomington, IN
* - that's actually a pretty great story. . . .