MAY 19, 1921 – AUGUST 4, 2022
Wilma Troyer Bontrager, beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt and friend, passed away
peacefully at her home near Fairview, Michigan, on August 4, 2022, at the age of 101. Wilma was born at the
family home on Kittle Road near Mio, Michigan, on May 19, 1921. She accepted Christ as her Savior in her
youth and joined the Fairview Mennonite Church.
She and Lyle, her husband of 68 years, raised their family in Clare, Michigan. She earned her advanced CNA
certification from Mid Michigan Community College and was a valued employee at the Clare Nursing Home.
In 1980, after 30 years, they moved back to the Fairview area, where she also worked at the AuSable Valley
Nursing Home for a time. She was a member of the Fairview Mennonite Church. She and Lyle were
supporters of Mennonite Disaster Service and volunteered after several disasters.
They spent their winters in the Sunnybreeze community near Arcadia, Florida, where they met cherished,
lifelong friends. She attended Sunnybreeze Christian Fellowship and enjoyed the many activities there as
recently as this past winter. She and her cousin Cleta biked many miles together around Lake Erie at
Sunnybreeze, usually a mile at a time.
Wilma was admired as an excellent quilter, avid reader and gardener. She loved growing beautiful flowers. In
the past two years she crocheted over 60 afghans, gifting them to her children, grandchildren and great-
grandchildren, as well as donating some for fundraisers. In June of this year, she rode her trike 2.5 miles in
one such fundraiser, raising over $1000.00 in pledges for Love, INC, a local Christian service organization.
She was known for her quiet, gentle nature, secure in her faith and love of Jesus.
Surviving are a son, Walden Lyle (Julie) Bontrager, Mt. Pleasant, MI; daughters, Laura Diane (Carl) Dube,
Fairview, MI, Linda Kaye Hawkins, Clare, MI, and daughter-in-law, Lynne Ann Kent Bontrager, Joplin MO.
There are six grandchildren: Jason David (Caitlin) Hawkins, Jacob Benjamin (Danielle) Hawkins, Justin Troy
(fiancé Christina) Bontrager, Corrie Beth (Karl) Johnson, Jon Michael (Rachel) Bontrager, and Jennifer Lynn
(Ryan) Ettinger. Wilma has ten great-grandsons: William Wallace Bontrager, Jordan Thomas Hawkins, Lewis
Jones Bontrager, James (Jack) Stirling Johnson, Easton Jacob Hawkins, Mack Jameson Bontrager, Eli Robert
Ettinger, Joseph Lyle Hawkins, Emmett Edgar Ettinger and Caspian Theodore Johnson.
She was eagerly anticipating the arrival of her first great-granddaughter in December.
Wilma was preceded in death by her parents, Samuel L. and Katie (Gascho) Troyer, her brothers, Era and Levi,
her sisters, Anna Sharp and Savilla Handrich, her husband, Lyle, her daughter, Beverly Ann Bontrager and son,
Wallace Samuel Bontrager.
Memorial gifts may be made to the Fairview Mennonite Church Women’s Sewing Group, Mennonite Disaster
Service, www.mds.mennonite.net, or the charity of your choice.
A Memorial Service will be held on August 27, 2022, at 11:00 am, at Fairview Mennonite Church, Fairview, MI.
Visitation will be before the service and during the luncheon to follow.
Burial will be in the Fairview Cemetery family plot.