Lynne S. Shirah

SHIRAH, Lynne S. Clark
Of Portage
Passed away Sunday morning, November 10, 2013 at the Rose Arbor Hospice Residence. Lynne was born May 28, 1935 in Chicago, IL the daughter of Wayne and Grace Kuehne Clark. Prior to her retirement, she was employed for several years with the State Dept. of Transportation as an office manager and payroll clerk. Lynne lived in expression of her passion for water and birds. She relished each morning not too early at her lovely home on the lake as she watched the waterfowl come and go with the changing seasons. The ducks, geese, and opportunistic squirrels took advantage of her daily feeding of seed and grain, while the songbirds and hummers made a show at the front yard feeders. Her love of birds extended into the house as well. Eddie, her Eclectus parrot has spent the past 9 years with the run of the house with Lynne and Don mopping up behind. He will miss her dearly, but has found a wonderful new home. Lynne developed an appreciation of music as a product of her life with Don. She became a talented jazz drummer and was a fixture in the Kalamazoo scene. She was grateful for a broad community of friends she grew to know through this avenue. Lynne also leaves behind a rich community of supportive friends and neighbors at Austin Lake who have given great depth to her daily life. She was kind and considerate, with great humor, intellect, and humility. She will be sorely missed. Lynne is survived by her sons, Chuck Cathy Shuster, Art Barbara Shuster; 2 grandchildren, Laurel Willoughby, Catie Grace Shuster; a brother and sister, Bruce Clark, Beth Carpenter; and a nephew, Daren Trish Carpenter. In accordance with Lynne's wishes there will be no visitation and a private family gathering was held earlier in the week. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to avianwonders.com, or the Kalamazoo SPCA.