Jean Phyllis Schultz

1923 - 2020

TRAVERSE CITY - Jean Phyllis (Welsh) Schultz, 97, of Traverse City, Adrian and Sebring, Fla., peacefully completed her long and interesting journey in this lifetime on Nov. 5, 2020.

She was the only child of Grover T. and Ada M. (Culver) Welsh, born Oct. 11, 1923, in Adrian. During her early years, which coincided with the Great Depression, her very close extended family included aunts Carrie Culver Cook, Edna Culver and Leone Culver Stoll.

Jean is survived by her sons, Dr. James (Connie) Schultz of Grand Rapids, Daniel Schultz of Bath, and Eric Schultz (Victoria Herbert) of Upper Marlboro, Md.; her daughter, Ann (Stephen) Freckelton of Traverse City; eight grandchildren, Ryan (Autumn) Schultz of Fruita, Colo., Kevin (Michelle) Schultz of Wesley Chapel, Fla., Scott (Molly Bouwsma) Schultz of Grand Rapids, Megan Freckelton (Jeffery Sloan) of Denver, Colo., Sara Freckelton of Traverse City, Capt. Hilary Schultz on active duty with the U.S. Army, Elizabeth Schultz of Gainesville, Fla., and Jennifer Schultz of Strousburg, Pa.; and four great-grandchildren, Julian, Amelia Lynn, Kai and Ren.

Jean is also survived by her sister-in-law, Jean (Schultz) Jacobs of LaGrange Park, Ill., and cousin, Shirley (Welsh) Howie of Sault Ste Marie.

Jean graduated from Adrian High School with the class of 1941. She then attended Adrian College where she was a member of Alpha Phi.

She was married to Lynn M. Schultz on March 12, 1943, just before Lynn received his orders for service with the U.S. Army Medical Corps in the Pacific Theater. Awaiting his return during World War II, she was employed in the offices of Kewaunee Manufacturing Company and later at Gerity Corporation in Adrian.

After the war, Jean was a stay-at-home mom raising three sons and a daughter and involving herself with their school activities, including service as president of the local PTA.

In 1962, she began working in the medical office of Drs. Eddy, Sarapo and Feeney in Adrian, which later became IMA, P.C. She was the office manager for that internal medicine group practice for 23 years and also served as president of the Lenawee County Medical Assistants Society.

Despite working full-time for many years, she still maintained her kitchen skills, and in the late 1970s was named Grand Champion of the annual creative recipe contest sponsored by the local newspaper.

In 1986, Lynn and Jean retired to Whisper Lake in Sebring, Fla., where both made many friends and were very active in their community.

When Lynn became president of the Homeowners Association, Jean served as almost his entire cabinet and chief of staff.

Following Lynn's death in January 2004, Jean felt the need for a new purpose in life for her senior years and sought appropriate volunteer work. That led her to discover Samaritan's Touch Care Center in Sebring, where she spent three mornings every week organizing patient medical records until 2015. She also volunteered in the office at Union Church in Avon Park, Fla., and later at St. John United Methodist Church in Sebring.

In 2015, just before her 92nd birthday, Jean decided to move to Traverse City in order to be closer to more of her family.

Jean was an avid bridge player and made many friends in the groups in which she played in Michigan and Florida.

In addition, she skillfully pieced together her family genealogy, primarily from a large collection of original documents handed down from previous generations. In her spare time, she took a variety of classes at the local college and also became very proficient at calligraphy.

She was a member of St. John United Methodist Church, the Whisper Lake Homeowners Association, the Lifetime Learners Institute of South Florida Community College, Lenawee County Medical Assistants, First Presbyterian Church in Adrian and ABWA.

For many years, Lynn and Jean supported the Class of 1942 Scholarship Fund at Adrian College, and they enjoyed receiving many thank-you notes from the students who had benefited from their contributions.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in her name may be made to either St. John United Methodist Church, 33631 Grand Prix Dr., Sebring, FL 33872, Samaritan's Touch Care Center, 3015 Herring Ave, Sebring, FL 33870, the Class of 1942 Scholarship Fund at Adrian College, Development Office, 110 S. Madison St., Adrian, MI 49221, or another organization of the donor's choice.

The family is especially grateful to the staff of Glen Eagle, French Manor South and Hospice of Michigan in Traverse City for their dedicated, compassionate care.

A private family service will be held at a later date with burial of cremains in the family plot at Oakwood Cemetery in Adrian.

Please visit www.lifestorytc.com to share your thoughts and more. Life Story Funeral Home, Traverse City, Mich.