Ella Rose Barnard

Ella Rose Barnard was a woman who loved the Lord. Her strong faith could be seen in how she lived. She graciously devoted much of her time and energy to serving others, and she volunteered as a Sunday school and Bible school teacher. She also served on the Lutheran's Women's Guild, held offices with the Lutheran Missionary League, and in Women's Bible Study.

On June 19, 1917, Fritz and Rose (Sheffler) Schulz joyfully welcomed the birth of their precious baby girl, Ella Rose. Ella was born during the Great War (World War I), which lasted from approximately 1914 to 1919. She shared many of her childhood memories with older brother Oscar. The two kids spent hours doing chores on the family farm where they raised dairy and beef cattle, as well as many clucking chickens. Their home and farm were in Sheridan Township of Mason County. It was quite a drive from where Ella's father worked. He was a baker for MacDonald Bakery in Ludington. Because of the long commute, her father stayed in Ludington during the week and came home on the weekends. With her father gone much of the time, her mother ran the household and the farm, with lots of help from Ella and Oscar. When Ella wasn't busy at home, she enjoyed the chance to earn a solid education by attending Bachelor School and then a year at Mason County Normal School. Ella loved school and she did her best to learn what she could all throughout life.

One summer, while Ella was working as a nanny for the Klouck's family, she met a kind and handsome milkman named Harry Barnard. The family she was working for was from Chicago and during the summers they vacationed in Pentwater. Ella bonded quickly with the family and she was always treated well by them. During the summer she spent some time getting to know Harry. He was working for his girlfriend's family delivering milk while on summer break from Central Michigan University. In time, Ella won his heart and he had to find a way to say goodbye to his former girlfriend. In 1937, Harry graduated from college and the couple made plans to tie the knot. On June 18, 1938, one day before Ella's 21st birthday, they married. Once they were wed, Ella and Harry moved to Mayville where Harry had found a teaching job. Two years later, Harry was offered the position as principal.

1945 was an exciting year for Ella and Harry. Their family grew to include their precious son, Roger. Four years later, in 1949, their family was complete with the birth of their darling daughter, Lois. Harry had begun working on his master's degree and once Lois was born, he moved the family to East Lansing so he could complete his degree. Later that same year, they relocated to Scottville where Harry took a new job as principal for Scottville High School.

Ella was a great mother. She had a soft spot for babies, but she also had the ability to connect with people of all ages. One of the families favorite pastimes were camping. Every year they would look forward to camping in Door County, Wisconsin and other state parks. They were good friends with Mark and Lois Smith and family who also enjoyed camping. Together, Ella and Lois worked hard to provide great camping meals. Being out on the boat was also a blast, whether they were out water skiing or just simply enjoying the view. While at home, Ella did her best to make delicious meals for her family there too. She was famous for her potato salad, lemon meringue pie and lemon bars. Her lemon bars were so coveted that if you were not one of the first to get to them, then you usually lost out. Sometimes, they were all eaten before mealtime.

Besides food for the stomach, Ella was also very concerned with the food for the mind and for the soul. She felt that the lack of education she received may have hindered Harry's career, but he always said that couldn't be further from the truth. He felt that she had more common sense than anyone he knew. Ella was always supporting Harry in his educational and professional pursuit and he valued her as a loving and caring partner. They were married for forty-four faithful years before Harry passed away on March 15, 1982.

Without Harry, life was never the same. Ella spent her time reading and learning, attending Bible studies and spending time with her family. She took many memorable trips to see Lois and her husband Bill at their home in Mt. Pleasant, MI. Ella and Bill had a special relationship and they would tease one another all in good fun. Bill and Lois invited Ella to many tailgate parties at Central Michigan University where they both taught, and it seemed that whenever she was there, CMU usually won. Ella was a grandma who enjoyed going to her grandchildren's solo and ensemble events and other special activities too. It brought her great joy to spend time with her grandchildren, Sara, Jarrett, Hilary, Eric and Marc. Whenever Bill and Lois would go on vacation Ella would graciously look after their pet cat. She usually cared for the cat for months at a time and she seemed to enjoy the company, but when asked if she wanted to keep the cat, she said, "No, I don't want a cat."

Ella was also a wonderfully skilled needleworker. She created beautiful needlepoint, crochet, knit and quilt pieces. She had belonged to a quilting group at church that made quilts for World Relief. Ella could also take a gold leaf paper, wrap it tightly around porcupine quills and use them to make amazing artwork. She was a woman of adventure as well. Even when others' wouldn't dare, Ella would go flying with longtime family friend Ted Winkle, and occassionally, the trip took them over to Door County.

Ella was a sweet woman of kind words and a gentle spirit. She was a community supporter, a member of MARSP and the Michigan Child Study Club. She was also a devoted wife, loving mother and grandmother, and a faithful friend. She will be dearly missed.

Ella Barnard died peacefully on Good Friday, April 14, 2006 at Tendercare of Ludington. She was preceded in death by her husband Harry and brother Oscar Schulz. She will be lovingly remembered by her children Roger Barnard of Ludington, Lois and Bill Lemcke of Mt. Pleasant, her grandchildren Sara Barnard, Jarrett Barnard, and Hilary Barnard all of Ludington, Eric Lemcke of Seattle, Washington, and Marc Lemke of Nashville, Tennessee, her sisters-in-law Kate Barnard of Shelby Township, Michigan, and Delores Barnard of Capac, and many nieces, nephews, and wonderful friends. Funeral services will be held for Ella at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, April 19 at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Scottville, with her pastor, the Rev. James Schroeder officiating. Burial will follow at Brookside Cemetery in Scottville. Friends may meet with her family for a time of visitation on Tuesday from 2:00-4:00p.m.and 7:00-9:00p.m. at the Stephens Life Story Funeral Home in Scottville. Those who wish may make memorial contributions to Our Savior Lutheran Church, or the Ella Barnard Memorial, c/o Roger Barnard. Please visit Ella's personal memory page at www.lifestorynet.com to read her Life Story, sign the guestbook, or leave a memory for her family.