Alice L. (Crist) McCrackin
Alice Louise (Crist) McCrackin, age 89, of Carson City, Michigan, passed away Feb. 5, at Country Friends Assisted Living in Sumner, surrounded by love.
She was born in Monterey, on Oct. 15, 1934, the daughter of the late Isadore and Helen (Perry) Crist. The family later moved to Kewanna. She graduated from Winamac High School with the class of 1952 and then went for additional training as a Medical Technologist. She began working for the Belding Hospital, in Belding, Michigan. This is where Ella and Jerry Keiffer would introduce her to her husband John “Jack” McCrackin. They were married on May 25, 1963, and together they made their home in Carson City where they raised their four children on the family farm.
Alice was a devoted mother, always putting her love in all she did for her family. She was a wonderful cook and loved to bake cookies, pies, and cakes, and she enjoyed testing out new recipes. Her role was to make sure her family sat down together and to eat three “square” meals a day. You never left the table hungry as she knew everyone’s favorite foods and stayed away from the ones they disliked. She worked around the farming schedule of planting and harvesting and everything else in between, she was a committed farmer’s wife. Her proudest moments were enjoying her 10 grandchildren and their visits.
She was dedicated to her Catholic faith and early on in her life had considered entering the religious life. She continued to be loyal and faithful to God and lived a life of prayer, Mass and encouraged us to offer our problems to God. She was a member of the St. Mary’s Church and St. Mary’s Altar Society in Carson City, Michigan. Alice enjoyed socializing, giggling with her sisters and having good conversations, each of these conversations she would later reflect on and enjoy as a gift from others. She used her talent of easy conversation to volunteer for the Crisis Pregnancy Hotline Services where she advocated for the unborn but also assisted the women going through difficult times.
Left to cherish her memories are her husband of 60 years, Jack; her four children: Tim [Patricia] McCrackin of Ionia, Perry McCrackin [Jeanne Strickland] of Carson City, Jenny [Ben] Upham of Big Rapids and Paul McCrackin of Lansing; her grandchild: Justine [Ryan] Bouman, Kaitlynn [Brann] Schmitt, Megan [Ryan] Willis, Ellen [Erik] Piper, Elizabeth McCrackin, Michael McCrackin, Andy Upham, Lauren McCrackin, Sarah McCrackin and John McCrackin; and three great-grandchildren: Rhett, Warren and Jansen and baby Piper on the way; siblings: Barbara [Francis] Hendrickson, Joe [Dorothy] Crist, Jim [Carol] Crist, Patricia [Jerry] Girton, and Marsha Gearhart; brother and sisters-in-law: Kate [Ron] Brown, Florence Kavanagh, Jean Richardson, Larry [Becky] McCrackin, Margie Hyde, Connie [Barry] Sacks, Sue [Alan] Goldstein and Judy McCrackin.
She was preceded in death by her parents: Helen and Isadore Crist; her daughter-in-law Michelle McCrackin; sister Delores Miller; brother John Crist; brothers-in-law: Larry Richardson, Larry Kavanagh, Gib Hyde, and Michael McCrackin; and sister-in-law Beverly McCrackin.
The family would like to thank Country Friends Assisted Living and the many caregivers she has had for the past six years for their care and love they gave Alice. She was truly blessed to have been treated like family at County Friends. In addition, a thank you to The Care Team Home Health & Hospice of Gratiot County who gave her additional care and attention.
A Mass of Christian Burial was held on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 11 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Carson City with Fr. Lou Anderson celebrating. Interment followed in Maryknoll Cemetery, Carson City.
Visitation was held Friday from 4 until 8 p.m. with a Rosary Service starting at 4 p.m. at the Lux and Schnepp Funeral Home, Carson City.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Epilepsy Foundation of Michigan or to the wishes of the family.
To view Alice’s obituary or to leave a condolence for the family please visit www.luxfuneralhomes.com.
(Pulaski County Journal — Feb. 14, 2024)