Virginia Marie 'Kern' Keiser

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Virginia Marie (Kern) Keiser

of Rochester Hills and formerly of Port Huron passed on to her

heavenly home on Thursday, Oct. 15, at age 86. She was a devout

Christian and devoted wife, mother, grandmother and

great-grandmother.

Virginia Kern was born April

24, 1923, in Port Huron to Frank and Marie Kern. She graduated from

St. Stephen High School in Port Huron, and took classes at Port Huron

Junior College and Marygrove College in Detroit.

She married William C. Arnold

in 1945 in Port Huron, and they had five children. During their

marriage, they resided in Royal Oak and Huntington Woods. They also

lived briefly in Iran while he was employed with Detroit Edison.

She married Willis F. Keiser

in 1980 in Madison Heights. They later moved to Port Huron. He

predeceased her in 2004.

Virginia was a full-time

mother to her children while they were at home and was an active

volunteer at St. Marys Church, in the school library, and as a

Girl Scout leader. In 1984, she began working as a volunteer at

Jefferson Adult Learning Center in Port Huron, assisting in the

teaching of English as a second language to scores of foreign

immigrants. She continued in that role for more than two decades into

her 80s. She moved to Rochester Hills in 2007.

In her later years, Mrs.

Keiser attended Mass daily while she was physically able. She loved

to play the organ, compete in card and board games of all kinds, put

together jigsaw puzzles, tend her flower garden, attend antique car

shows and watch Jeopardy on television.

She is survived by five

children: Judith Arnold of Rochester; Ken (Teresa) Arnold of

Lambertville; Chris (Sandy) Arnold of Richmond; Susan (Don) Tonkovich

of Anchor Point, Alaska; and Jeff Arnold of Anchorage, Alaska; four

stepchildren: Katherine (Don) Dahlstrom of Goodrich; Virginia (Greg)

Borowski of Petersburg; Janet Lowry of Clawson; and John (Cherrie

Claflin) Keiser of Phoenix, Oregon.

There are four grandchildren:

Christian Arnold of Richmond; Gwendolyn Arnold of Bloomington, Ind.;

Joel Arnold of Ann Arbor; and Ron (Ashley) Arnold of Port Huron; nine

step-grandchildren: David (Kate) Borowski of Sterling, Va.; Stephen

(Susan) Borowski of Maui, Hawaii; Eli (Sarah) Keiser of Las Vegas,

Nev.; Jonathan Keiser and Rhiana Keiser, both of San Diego, Calif.;

Jennifer (Jay) Laursen of Surprise, Ariz.; Ben (Danielle) Lowry of

Clawson; Peter (Levylyn) Lowry of Sterling Heights; and Scot Lowry of

Madison Heights. They are also five great-grandchildren and nine

step-great-grandchildren.

There are numerous nieces,

nephews, cousins, and uncle Joseph (Jean) Bauer of Glendale, MO.

She was preceded in death by

her parents; her husband, Willis; a stepson, Charles Keiser; and a

step-grandson, Craig Parrish.

There is to be a

visitation/viewing from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18,

at Karrer-Simpson Funeral Home, Port Huron. Funeral mass is scheduled

for 11 a.m., Monday, Oct. 19, at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Port

Huron, with burial at Mount Hope Cemetery.

On Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 12:30

p.m., there will be a memorial service at All Seasons of Rochester

Hills community, 175 E. Nawakwa Rd.

In lieu of flowers, donations

made be made to the Capuchin Soup Kitchen of Detroit, Odyssey

Healthcare of Southfield or Right to Life.