Honoring Tradition.
Celebrating Life.

Eunice Buskard

May 13, 1932 - April 10, 2007
Sparta, MI

Eunice BuskardPrint



Visitation

Thursday, April 12, 2007
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM EDT
Heritage Life Story Funeral Homes
Van Strien Creston Chapel
1833 Plainfield Ave., N.E
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
(616) 361-2613
Driving Directions

Visitation

Friday, April 13, 2007
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM EDT
Heritage Life Story Funeral Homes
Van Strien Creston Chapel
1833 Plainfield Ave., N.E
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
(616) 361-2613
Driving Directions

Visitation

Friday, April 13, 2007
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM EDT
Heritage Life Story Funeral Homes
Van Strien Creston Chapel
1833 Plainfield Ave., N.E
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
(616) 361-2613
Driving Directions

Service

Saturday, April 14, 2007
11:00 AM to 12:00 PM EDT
Heritage Life Story Funeral Homes
Van Strien Creston Chapel
1833 Plainfield Ave., N.E
Grand Rapids, MI 49505
(616) 361-2613
Driving Directions

Contributions


At the family's request memorial contributions are to be made to those listed below. Please forward payment directly to the memorial of your choice.

Hospice of Michigan
989 Spaulding SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49301
(616) 454-1426

New Community Church
2340 Dean Lake Rd. NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49505

Driving Directions
Web Site

American Cancer Society
P.O. Box 22478
Oklahoma City, OK 73123
(800) 227-2345

New Community Church
2340 Dean Lake Rd NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49505

Web Site

Flowers


Below is florist information recommended by the funeral home.

Ball Park Floral
8 Valley Ave.
Grand Rapids, MI 49504
(616) 459-3409
Driving Directions


Eunice Buskard

Life Story / Obituary


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Eunice Buskard was a wonderful woman, whose life was filled with so much beauty, from the music she created, to the islands she loved most of all. She found her greatest peace in the Pacific Ocean, in the glorious greens and brilliant blues of Hawaii, with her beloved husband by her side. The beauty she found there filled her heart with happiness, a joy she brought back and shared with everyone who knew her.

Eunice's story began on a warm spring day in 1932, in the quaint northern Michigan town of Mancelona, near the sapphire-blue waters of Torch Lake. Those were difficult times in this country, which was caught in the teeth of the Great Depression, and nearly every American family was affected so deeply. On Friday, the 13th of May, 1932, Acel and Donna (Johnson) Short found a reason to celebrate, with the birth of a beautiful baby girl, a daughter they named Eunice Erneen.

Eunice was the sixth child of 14 in the large family, though two of her siblings died at birth. Together with her three brothers and eight sisters, Eunice grew up in the little town of Mancelona, where her father worked as a lumberjack and her very busy mother cared for the home and children.

Eunice attended Mancelona Grade School, through the eighth grade, where she was a cheerleader at the school. She didn't attend high school, staying home to help her mother around the house instead.

In 1952, when Eunice was 20, her father took a job with the City of Grand Rapids, so Eunice and her family packed up and headed south, a move which little did she know would change her life.

One warm summer day in June of 1954, Eunice met a handsome young man named Tom Buskard, when she pulled up to the filling station he worked at. It was truly love at first sight for the both of them, and they began a whirlwind romance, starting with a date to a drive-in movie. Of course, dating Tom meant putting up with the teasing from her sisters, as the girls had a "tradition" of endlessly tormenting whichever one of them had a date that night!

Tom was worth it, however, and the two dated just three months, before getting married on September 20, 1954, the start of a wonderful life together.

Eunice and Tom shared a special marriage, full of love and laughter and fond memories. Eunice was a wonderful wife, who enjoyed cooking and baking, and playing her guitar or Lowery organ for relaxation at night. Though they had no children of their own, Eunice was very close to her brothers and sisters, as well as a beloved aunt to her nieces and nephews. The family shared many wonderful picnics over the years, getting together for great food and plenty of great laughs, as well.

Eunice and her husband also traveled extensively, from their many hunting and fishing trips all over the northern Michigan woods where she grew up, to her favorite place on earth: Hawaii.

That incredible chain of emerald isles, poking through the Pacific Ocean, struck a chord deep within her, and she always said the day she first set foot in Hawaii was the greatest day of her life. She and Tom visited Hawaii 10 times over the years, staying each time for two or three wonderful weeks. They saw many of the islands together, and she loved each and every one of them. There was nothing better to Eunice than sitting in a lounger on the beach, a tasty Chi-Chi drink in one hand (her favorite), and her beloved Tom by her side.

Eunice had many other loves, of course, the way happy, fun-loving people always do. She loved to eat pasta and sea food, or listen to music, especially country and anything by Elvis Presley, her all-time favorite. She could play many of his songs on the guitar and organ, and she was a fan of Elvis' movies, too. Eunice also enjoyed knitting and crocheting, and collected dollar bills with her initials on them, which she saved to play at the casino.

Sadly, her husband died on September 15, 1992, after 38 wonderful years together. Eunice took his loss hard, but relied on her loving family for support. After Tom died, she and her sister Dorine became inseparable, doing everything together. Eunice loved her sister's sense of humor, and always made her laugh.

Sadly, Eunice died on Tuesday, April 10, 2007, at the age of 74.

Eunice was a wonderful woman, whose life was filled with so much love, laughter, and beauty. She was a beloved wife, sister, aunt and friend, who found her greatest joy in the sun, sand and brilliant-blue waters of the islands. She brought that joy back home for us, in her heart, and in the love she shared with all who knew her. She will be greatly missed.

Eunice is survived by her brothers and sisters Erwin and Inez Short, Wayne Short, Caresse Stephenson, Joyce and Bill Nickerson, Fran Kaminski, Dorine Brailey, Marilyn and Leo Harmon; several nieces and nephews and many friends. A service to celebrate Eunice's life will be held at the Heritage Life Story Funeral Home, Van Strien Creston Chapel, 1833 Plainfield NE, on Saturday April 14, at 11:00 AM. Friends and relatives may meet with her family on Thursday from 7-9 PM and Friday from 2-4 and 7-9 PM. Interment will be in Blythefield Memorial Gardens. Contributions to Hospice of Michigan or New Community Church would be appreciated. To read more about Eunice's life, share a memory or photo, or to sign her guest book, visit her web page at www.lifestorynet.com.

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