Kim Michele Hughes

Hughes, Kim Michele Kim Michele Hughes, 68, passed away unexpectedly on February 28, 2022, with loving family by her side while on winter holiday in Florida. She began her life journey on June 2, 1953, in Bay City, Michigan, the oldest of three children born to Elaine (Kerkau) and George J. "Lad" Hughes, Jr., both deceased. Growing up near Saginaw Bay set the course for a life lived near water. Michele was the consummate Gemini, inhabiting both ends of the spectrum-a pragmatic realist with a curiosity for how things worked mixed with a touch of whimsy and shenanigans-and boy, could she tell a good story. Michele graduated from Central Michigan University (Fire up, Chips!) with a degree in social work. She loved laughing with her college girls on their yearly reunions. Michele spent her entire career with the state of Michigan as a fierce advocate for the under-served in our rural communities, retiring at the supervisory level and then moving to a home on the Rapid River. Michele was a voracious reader of fiction and nonfiction alike and was happiest anywhere on or near the water. She met and married her one true love, John Morton "Mort" Hyslop, and together they literally sailed their way through life, sharing over 25 years of travel, trips, and adventures. Her happiest times were at her cottage on Beaver Island, where she excelled as navigator and clue solver for the Beaver Island Road Rally, cheered on the ponies on Derby Day, or just "boodled" around the island. She cherished spending time at the Hyslop family compound, "The Pines," on Old Mission Peninsula and hanging with friends from near and far on the tropical coral islands of Belize. Her love of any time spent near the water was equaled by her love of time on the water, from snorkeling the barrier reef off Caye Caulker, sailing the Great Lakes or the waters of Belize, and fishing for bass from a rowboat on Michigan's inland lakes, to throwing a hand line to catch barracuda or fending off pirates in the Caribbean. Michele will be dearly missed by her husband, Mort Hyslop of Rapid City, MI; sister Laurie (Kevin) Konarska of Rockford, MI, and nephew Patrick (Stef) Konarska and his daughters, JoJo and Maggie, and niece Quinn Hughes Konarska; and brother Blair (Mary) Hughes of Houghton Lake, MI, and nephews Corey (Sarah) Hughes and Blaine Hughes and niece Kristine Hughes. Michele will be remembered fondly by in-laws Mary (Bill) Jones, Bob (Elizabeth) Hyslop, Bill Hyslop, Erin (Nate) Fuller, and Brian (Cathy) Hyslop; as well as life-long treasured friends whose stories of shared travels and adventures could fill a book. Michele's lessons for us all would be to live for the moments that bring you bliss: Stop to admire the beauty of a peony, smell the lilacs, listen for Spring Peepers, watch the sun rise as often as you can, catch the view from the top of a lighthouse, read a good book or ten, give yourself permission for that second glass of Chardonnay, instigate an impromptu game of water balloons, and always make time for friends and family. Memorials to honor a life well lived may be directed to: The Beaver Island Rural Health Clinic 37304 King's Hwy. Beaver Island, MI 49782 or: "Beaver Head Lighthouse Preservation" Beaver Island Historical Society P.O. Box 263 Beaver Island, MI 49782 or: a nature center of your choice Memorial services for family will be set at a later date.