Maribeth Maye Tronsen

Maribeth Maye Tronsen (Youmans) passed away at her home on November 24th, 2021. Maribeth was born on June 16th, 1949, at Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, North Carolina. She was the first child of Earnest and Mary (Witt) Youmans. Maribeth, the self-proclaimed army brat (heavy on the brat :)), spent the first part of her life stationed with her family in many places, including Germany. After her father’s retirement, her family settled in the Morley area where she sought adventures and enjoyed getting into mischief as a child. Maribeth developed her love of education and teaching while attending Morley Stanwood High School. She was an active and outgoing. Thanks to special teachers Ms. Ryzenga, Mr. Lodden and Mrs. McIntyre she learned and fell in love with teaching and sewing and home economics. She also caught the eye of Robert (Bob) Tronsen in 1966, which started their selfless romance of 56+ years. In 1968, she graduated with honors and began her higher education journey at Central Michigan University where she majored in home economics and minored in biology, just “for fun”. On July 31st, 1971, she and Bob were married. They made their home in Amble, Michigan and had their children Charlotte and Michael. Maribeth set out in her professional career teaching in such schools as Morley Stanwood, Montcalm Community College, Ionia High School. With home economics as her focus, she also experienced a layoff but put her skills to work at home, which included moving to the Morley Farm, baking bread, food preservation, gardening, and running a small homecrafts business with her dear friends. Maribeth went back to the schools this time teaching Biology. During that time, she also continued her journey with higher education at University of Michigan Biological Station where over the summers she earned her master’s degree in biology while also learning wildlife photography. She finished her teaching career where it all started at Morley Stanwood High School teaching home economics and biology until her retirement in 2008. In her retirement Maribeth quilted and sewed. She also loved on her grandchildren Ross, Kate, Ian, Connor, and Mia. And finally learned to play the hammered dulcimer. In 2018, Maribeth suffered from a stroke that changed her life and those around her. But her spirit remained intact often recalling random events or facts that made her family laugh and continued teaching all who supported her, the life lessons you just could not get anywhere else. Maribeth is survived by her team of family and caregivers including her beloved and devoted husband Bob, her daughter Charlotte and husband Tom Tetsworth, her son Michael and wife Maureen Tronsen, her beloved grandchildren Katherine Tetsworth, Ian, Connor, and Mia Tronsen. She is grieved by her dear dog, Earl. Maribeth is also survived by her sisters, Angela Youmans, and Debbie (Michael) Salisbury and brother Arden (Barb) Youmans, sisters-in-law Patty (Don) Bauman, Ruth Hess, and Barb Tronsen along with many nieces and nephews. Also surviving are her expanded family of special friends and children including Patty Hyde, Sandra Roe, Patty Hawley, Michelle Sloan, Jackie Jack, Kate Kelley, Nicole Laketos, and Birgit Lampe. Maribeth was preceded in death by loved ones who helped prepare her the way to come home; Her parents, her beloved in-laws, Ronald and Charlotte Tronsen, her brother Edward, and her eldest grandson Ross Michael along with her dear friends Patty Chipman-Nitz, Marian Parr, Blanche Lodden and Sally Darnell. Her family will receive family and friends at a visitation Sunday December 19, 2021 from 4:00pm-7:00pm at Howard City Funeral & Cremation Services, 225 E. Edgerton Street in Howard City. A service of remembrance will be December 20, 2021, at 1:00 pm at the funeral home in Howard City. Maribeth’s family have set up a scholarship in her memory at Morley Stanwood High School.