Virginia J. Grubaugh

Virginia Grubaugh, 84, of Mt. Pleasant passed away Saturday, May 31, 2008 at the Isabella County Medical Care Facility. A Mass of Christian Burial celebrating her life will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 3, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church with Father Robert Byrne presiding. Burial will be in St. Patrick Cemetery in Irishtown. The family will receive friends at the Charles R. Lux Family Funeral Home on Monday from 3-8 p.m. with the vigil beginning at 7:30 p.m. Visitation continues at the church on Tuesday from 10-11 a.m. Memorial contributions may be made to the Sacred Heart Academy Foundation or to the Isabella County Medical Care Facility. Envelopes are available at the funeral home. Virginia was born June 10, 1923, in Cadillac, the only child of Donald and Irene (Jenkins) Bittel. A graduate of Alma High School in 1940, she received her Bachelors from Nazareth College in 1943. On April 7, 1947 she married Dean J. Grubaugh at St. Joseph Church in St. Louis. She later earned her Masters from Central Michigan University in 1970. Virginia taught Spanish and other subjects at Mt. Pleasant High School from 1963 until her retirement in 1986. Prior to 1963 she had taught at Algonac, Saginaw, Shepherd, and Farwell High Schools. Some of her favorite pastimes were reading, traveling, crossword puzzles. She belonged to numerous organizations including People to People, International Relations Committee, AAUW, Phi Delta Kappa, MARSP, Mt. Pleasant Historical Society, Sacred Heart Parish and its Catholic Daughters. Virginia is survived by her daughter, Kay and David Gugala of Northville and their children, Justin (Karen) Gugala and Lauren Gugala; her son, Thomas Grubaugh of Mt. Pleasant, his children, Edward (Yoli) Arriaga, Thomas Grubaugh, Kathryn Grubaugh and their mother, Linda Grubaugh; and five great-grandchildren, Carolina and James Arriaga and Madison, Macy, and Mary Gugala. Besides her parents, Virginia was preceded in death by her husband, Dean in 1963.