Lola M. Lyons

Lola’s life began on December 13, 1925 at home on Rose St. in Kalamazoo, the daughter of Stanley Arthur and Doris (Riley) Haas. She was educated at County Normal College and took extension classes at Western Michigan College. Lola was a rural schoolteacher in Cass County for 30 years. She educated children in most of the county one room schoolhouses retiring from the old Peavine School. She was united in marriage to Bert Bainbridge who preceded her in death in 1961 and remarried to Harrison Lyons on April 17, 1962 in Cassopolis. Lola was an avid reader and loved people. Her family recalls that she was an avid house cleaner and she also had a bit of a lead foot. In her younger years, she raced in powder puff races at local tracks and her husband recalls changing her car brakes far more often than usual. Her loving family includes her husband Harrison Lyons of Dowagiac, her children Dave (Carol) Bainbridge of South Bend, Charles Bainbridge of Battle Creek, and Brenda Madaj of Chicago, granddaughter Andrea Bainbridge of Chicago, sister Kathleen (Pete) Pedersen of Cassopolis, and James (Sharon) Haas of Decatur and several nieces and nephews. Lola passed away on Sunday April 12, 2009 at Lakeland Hospital in Niles. She is preceded in death by husband Bert Bainbridge, daughter Susan Bainbridge, sister Mary Helen Fosdick, brothers Wayne, Merle and Fred Haas. Her family will receive friends on Tuesday from 5-8 p.m. at McLauchlin-Clark Funeral Home where her funeral service will be held on Wednesday at 10 a.m. led by Reverend John Kasper of the Dowagiac First United Methodist Church. She will be laid to rest in Marcellus Cemetery. Memorial contributions in her name may be directed to the Dowagiac Public Library. Please sign Lola’s guestbook and leave a memory of her at www.mclauchlin-clark.com .