Ernest Hauch

Ernest Hauch, 89, of Stevensville, died Sunday, September 14, 2003 at his residence. A funeral service celebrating his life will be held Wednesday, September 17, at 11:30 A.M. at St. Paul?s Lutheran Church in Stevensville, where he had been a member for 66 years. Burial will follow in Lincoln Township Cemetery. Friends may call from 2-4 & 6-8 P.M. Tuesday at Starks & Menchinger Family Funeral Home, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph. Memorials may be made to St. Paul?s Lutheran church or the Visiting Nurse Associations of America. Those wishing to share a memory or sign the guest book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com. Mr. Hauch was born June 20, 1914 in Bridgman to Adolph and Amalie (Gaschoefske) Hauch. He graduated from the Berrien County Normal in 1932 and taught at the one room Oak Forest School in Bertrand Township from 1932 to 1934. On October 24, 1936, he married Doris Obendorfer in Baroda. Ernie was the owner and operator of Ernie?s Meat Market in Grau?s Supermarket in Stevensville from 1945 to 1968. He served on the Lincoln Township Planning Commission and served as Lincoln Township Supervisor from 1970 to 1976, during which time he was an active proponent of ending the sand mining in Grand Mere and bringing water and sewer to Lincoln Township. In November 1976, a Herald-Palladium editor noted that Ernie retired ?after six years that he distinguished with modesty and common sense.? He was a member of the Southwest Michigan Regional Planning commission and served on the Tri-Unit Fire Board for eight years. He later served as assessor for the townships of Royalton, Chikaming, and Three Oaks, retiring in 1989. Mr. Hauch is survived by his wife of 66 years, Doris; his son, Duane Hauch of Garden Grove, CA; two daughters Marilyn (David) Faulkner of Hillsborough, New Jersey, and Doreen (Duane) Schmidt of Stevensville; four grandchildren Michael Rondelli of San Diego, CA, Regan Pallas of Troy, MI; Jason Pallas of Grand Rapids, MI, and Craig (Janelle) Pallas of Mason, MI; one great-grandson, Kannen Pallas; a sister Elizabeth Wierzbicki of Munster, IN; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his brothers John, Raymond (Dick), Walter, Ted, Clarence, and Lawrence Hauch; and sisters Ruth Geipel, Josephine De Schaaf, and Irene Crenshaw.