Mary Ellen Fortino

Mary Ellen Fortino, 82, of Mt. Pleasant, passed away Monday, Sept. 23, 2002 at her home surrounded by her family. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Thursday, September 26, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church with Father Robert Byrne officiating. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery. Friends may call at Lux Funeral Home on Wednesday from 2-4 and 6-9 p.m. with a vigil service beginning at 6:30 p.m. Visitation will continue at the funeral home on Thursday from 10-10:45 a.m. Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Central Michigan or Sacred Heart Academy Foundation. Envelopes are available at Lux Funeral Home. Mary Ellen was born October 3, 1919, in Pickford, the daughter of Albert and Gertrude (Hancock) Bumstead. She married Harry Fortino on October 17, 1941. She volunteered at the Isabella County Soup Kitchen and also worked the elections at Kinney School. She was a member of Sacred Heart Parish, the Catholic Daughters, the Historical Society, and Friends of the Library. She enjoyed reading, gardening, cooking, and collecting antiques. But most important to her was her family. Mary Ellen is survived by her seven daughters, Suzanne (Eugene) Leich of Bloomfield Hills; Mary Lou (Mike) Zelinski of Troy; Carole (Tom) Bunting of Eliot, Maine; Trudy Fortino of Northville; Paula Fortino and husband, Doug Denney of Greenville; Dori (Bob) Adams of Farwell and Kim Fortino and her partner, Lisa Micheletto of Farmington Hills; 11 grandchildren; eight great grandchildren; one sister, Eloise Moore of Huntington Woods; and her sister-in-law, Marie Bumstead of Alma. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Harry Fortino in 1994; son, Paul Bobo Fortino in 1988; two sisters, Flossie Hamilton and Dorothy Homberg; and one brother, Ennis Bumstead.