Mary Louise LaFreniere, 88, of E. Clark St., Negaunee, passed away peacefully, late Tuesday evening, May 8, 2018 at UP Health System Marquette.

Mary was born January 1, 1930 in Negaunee to Gordon ‘Bud’ and Loretta (Smith) Reichel, attended Negaunee Schools and was a lifelong area resident. She was a loving and devoted homemaker to her husband and 9 children, and also did accounting and secretarial work at LaFreniere’s Furniture, which her husband owned and operated.

Mrs. LaFreniere was a devout member of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Negaunee where she was a member of the Alter Society and also sang in the church choir. Mary was a dedicated volunteer for Eastwood RSVP. She was known for entertaining the residents of Eastwood with her personal rendition of Patsy Cline’s, ‘Crazy.’

In her earlier years she enjoyed bowling and playing cards with family and friends. Most important to Mary was her family. The family camp on Wolfe Lake was a favorite spot for the entire family, where countless memories were made. She also loved hosting during the Holiday season. Mary and Donald’s home was open not only to family, but to extended family who needed a place to go. Her grandchildren were most important to her, and she was the family babysitter for countless years.

Surviving are her loving and devoted husband, Donald J. LaFreniere; 8 children: Fay (Robert, Sr.) Hollinshead of Ishpeming, Lee (Janis) LaFreniere of Ishpeming, Sue (Scott) Young of Marquette, Mary Anne Chadwick of Farmington Hills, Pam (Randy Frost) Ihamaki of Sidnaw, Kathy (Stuart) Sarasin of Marquette, Mark (Shannon) LaFreniere of Marquette and Paul (Toni Penglase) LaFreniere of Ishpeming; 12 grandchildren: Robert (Charlette) Hollinshead, Jr., Lisa (Adam) Seelen, Wade (Lana) LaFreniere, Lori (Steven) Oelhafen, Cristyn Chadwick and her husband, Matt Cave, Whitney Chadwick, Nathan (Amanda) Ihamaki, Heather (Allen Brown) Ihamaki, Michele (Carl) Black, Courtney LaFreniere, Brittney (Kent) Hay and Berkley (Zachary) French; 8 great-grandchildren: Dalton, Addison, Taylor, Brady, Ethan, Payton, Madelyn and Winifred; 3 great-great grandchildren: Aly, Jaxon and Waylon; sister-in-law, Rita (Duane) Palomaki and their family; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents; her son, Kenneth D. ‘Dale’ LaFreniere; and brothers, Gordon ‘Manny’ and William ‘Billy’ Reichel.

Memorial services will be held at 4:30 pm on Friday, May 11th at Koskey Funeral Home with Rev. D. Michael Carriere officiating. Inurnment will be in the St. John’s Episcopal Church Columbarium. The family will greet relatives and friends from 3:00 pm until the time of services at 4:30 pm at the funeral home on Friday. A private immediate family gathering will also be held. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Mary’s memory to the Eastwood Nursing Center Activity Fund.

The family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Dr. Wayne Carlson and the staff of Eastwood Nursing Center for the loving care provided over the years, and also to the nursing staff in the ICU at UP Health System Marquette.

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