Geneva P. Cornell

Geneva P. Cornell
Died December 20, 2025
NORTHPORT - Geneva Pearl Cornell, 99, of Northport, passed away peacefully on Saturday, December 20, 2025, at home surrounded by her loving family, just two months before her 100th birthday.
Geneva lived a truly extraordinary life. She endured the Great Depression, witnessed World War II, raised a family through the 1950s and 1960s in Clinton County and later embraced new adventures alongside her husband in Leelanau County.
She was born on February 19, 1926, at home on her family's farm near Howell, Michigan, the youngest of seven children born to Elmer and Charlotte Turner. After graduating from Fowlerville High School at the age of 17, Geneva worked for seven months at the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor. Too young at the time to enroll in the Henry Ford School of Nursing, she began her nurse's training in February of 1944 under the Cadet Nurse Corps at St. Lawrence Hospital in Lansing.
In 1945, Geneva met her future husband, James A. "Jim" Cornell, on a blind date. He introduced her to motorcycle riding, and following his discharge from the U.S. Army in November, the two became engaged at Christmas. After graduating from nursing school, Geneva and Jim were married on March 22, 1947, and began their married life in Jim's hometown of St. Johns, Michigan.
Geneva's nursing career spanned many years and experiences, including work at Clinton Memorial Hospital in St. Johns and service throughout rural schools with the State Health Department. One of her most memorable experiences occurred in August of 1968, when she served as a missionary team nurse. Geneva, Jim, their two daughters, and a group from their home church traveled by vehicle through Mexico to British Honduras (now Belize) for an unforgettable three-week mission trip.
The Cornells lived on Centerline Road in St. Johns, where they raised their daughters, Kathy and Karen, and were deeply involved in their community and church, Bingham Evangelical United Brethren. In 1969, they embarked on a new chapter, moving to Northport. Geneva immediately began working at Leelanau Memorial Hospital, while Jim developed his fishing tackle business, Northport Industries making the Swim Whiz, Swim Zag, and Alcor Reels-right in town.
Geneva and Jim became active and cherished members of the Northport community and were longtime members of Trinity Church. They spent many winters traveling to Florida and, for more than two decades, wintered in Canebrake, a community in the southern California desert. Together, they were lifetime members of the Buckley Old Engine Club.
Music brought Geneva great joy. She played the guitar and hammer dulcimer and, in later years, often played with friends John and Phyllis Kilcherman at local events. She was occasionally joined by her daughter Kathy, who played the accordion, and she lovingly nurtured her daughter Karen's beautiful singing voice.
Geneva was a wonderful cook, remembered for her famous dishes like her signature potato salad, biscuits, lemon pies, jellies and berry syrups, and also her "Fire Hole" beans, pasties, "puff cat" cookies, breads and rolls. Then there was ginger cake, cherry cake with lemon sauce, a variety of soups and the fried fish dinners with corn bread and hush puppies. Her door was always open to family and neighbors. Over the years three of Jim's brothers lived with them as well as two nieces, a granddaughter and a nephew for a year. What a history of lives touched.
Geneva and Jim shared countless miles on motorcycles as members of the Leelanau Wanderers riding club. She also enjoyed deer hunting and proudly displayed the largest rack in the family on the dining room wall for many years.
Her life was rich with stories-far too many to tell in full. Her 71-year marriage to Jim created a remarkable family legacy filled with love, adventure, faith, and resilience.
Geneva is survived by her children, Kathleen R. Williams and Karen L. (Steve) Gregory; her grandchildren, Charlotte Williams, Rebecca (Bruce) Fisk, Matthew Gregory, and Aaron (Nicole) Gregory; her great-grandchildren, Elizabeth, Casey, and Wyatt Fisk; Halle, Clayton, and Abigail Gregory; Evan and Ty Gregory; and her great-great-grandchildren, Amarah and Raelynn Gregory.
She was preceded in death by her parents; her beloved husband of 71 years, Jim; her siblings, Eleanor, Glenn, Dwayne, Lawrence, Vivian, and Marion; and her daughter, Marla Jo.
The visitation will be held on Saturday, January 31st from 11:30am at the Martinson Funeral Home in Suttons Bay. The memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. also on Saturday, January 31st at the Martinson Funeral Home.
Memorial donations in Geneva's memory may be directed to Dave Roever Ministries to veterans – Roever Foundation, PO Box 136130, Fort Worth, TX 76136, or the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, 2361 Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10306.
Please share condolences and memories with Geneva's family at www.martinson.info.
Arrangements are with the Martinson Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Leelanau.