Mary Vos

Mary Nowicke Vos, age 76, of Romeo, MI; passed away Tuesday, November 22, 2011, surrounded by her family after an epic battle with multiple myeloma and leukemia. She was born to Helen Blythe Smith Mitchell and George Mitchell on April 5, 1935, in Peoria, IN. Her father worked on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad. Her mother, a teacher, had taken a break from one-room school houses and met her father while working as a Harvey Girl. She graduated in 1952 (at age 16) from Petersburg High School High School in Petersburg, Indiana. She attended Indiana University for a year with full intentions of a medical career, but even though she worked part-time, baby-sat for faculty, and lived in a cooperative dormitory, finances did not allow her to finish. She left IU for adventure in San Francisco working in the law office of a cousin. She later moved to San Diego. In California she learned to love avocados, Chinese food, Balboa Park, and herbs and spices unheard of in southern Indiana. Even in Bloomington in the 1950s, a “pizza pie,” bore no resemblance to the pizzas she would later enjoy. She moved to Southfield, Michigan in 1955 to live with her dearly loved in-laws, Edward and Alice Nowicke until her then- husband, Richard E. Nowicke finished his naval service. She survived her beloved husband, the late Reverend Peter Vos. She is survived by her children Carole Nowicke of Bloomington, IN; Richard Nowicke (wife Cheryl) of Beverly Hills, MI; and Craig Nowicke (wife Linda) of Tampa, FL; grandchildren Alex and Tonia Nowicke of Tampa, FL; step-children Thomas Vos (wife Sharon) of Whidby Island, Washington; Martha Bondy (husband Howard) of Linden, MI; as well as step-grandchildren and a step-great grandchild. Mary had many passions, including reading, gardening, gourmet cooking, and travel. She read widely in fiction, poetry, medicine, philosophy, theology, technical manuals for all of her power-tools, appliances and vehicles, classic American humor, and most recently was reading “Civil War Wives,” Elmore Leonard, Sue Grafton, and a sustainable gardening book about ducks and squash. She and her family moved to Romeo in 1964. Her yard, in which she spent many enjoyable hours, is filled with unique specimen trees all selected and planted by Mary as well as an unrivaled raspberry patch. She missed her trees when she spent winters in Florida, and was so particular about taxonomy that her children often had no clue as to the common names of some of the plants in her yard. She loved most forms of music with the possible exceptions of really bad bluegrass, acid rock, metal, and Bruckner symphonies. She was a friend of the Detroit and Flint symphony orchestras and had many friends who were professional musicians—folk and classical. If she could hear Matt Watroba live, she would. She attended a surprising number of regional and national conferences of the International Tuba and Euphonium Association, and even attended the International Trumpet Guild’s conference in Bangkok, Thailand. She was a devoted and lifelong member of the First Congregational Church in Romeo, where she wore many hats including bookkeeping and making peach pies and sloppy-joes for Labor Day festivities. She knew how many hundreds of dozen buns needed to be ordered for the festival. She was a role model to her children and grandchildren who adored her spunk & tenacity sprinkled with a good sense of humor. Although she was not a teacher by trade, she was very much a teacher in practice. She taught all her children to read advanced materials at very early ages. She tutored son Craig in Calculus, and even took a chemistry class with him so that they could be lab partners. Mary led by example for many causes for the greater good including recycling. Woe betide the child who didn’t return deposit bottles, tossed out paper, cardboard, metal or glass, or failed to reuse freezer bags or perfectly good pieces of aluminum foil! She contributed to many interests including Blufton College, National Public Radio, WDET, WUOM, Friends of the Romeo Public Library, the Democratic National Party, The American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, the Arthritis Foundation, etc. She will be sorely missed by her family, many friends and Facebook pals. A memorial celebration is planned for January 7, 2012, 11:00AM, at First Congregational Church, UCC of Romeo, 102 Church Street, Romeo, Michigan 48065 (586)752-3661. Memorial contributions to First Congregational Church of Romeo in honor of Mary Vos would be appreciated. Please leave condolences at www.pixleyfh.com