Charlotte Rey Humphrey (Stone) died Monday, Feb. 12, after a brief battle with metastatic breast cancer. She was 87.
She was born on July 11, 1936, to Charles Rex Stone and Margaret Elizabeth Stone (Allen) in Dorr Township. She grew up on a small farm in Dorr Township and graduated from Hopkins High School in 1954, where she was vice president of her senior class.
She married Elmer Evart Lawes in 1955 and moved to Kalamazoo. Mr. Lawes entered the US Army in 1956 and was stationed in Augsburg, Germany, where Charlotte joined him. Their first daughter Renate Rey Lawes (Merritt) was born there in 1957.
Elmer was discharged from the service soon afterward and they returned stateside. A second daughter, Leonarda Louise Lawes, was born in 1959. In 1960, they purchased a small dairy business in Hopkins Township and called it Rock-N-L-Acres.
In 1963, a third daughter, Amber Ann Lawes (Muma) was born.
Elmer and Charlotte were divorced and Charlotte relocated with her girls to Grand Rapids. Charlotte began working for the City of Grand Rapids in 1970 and later worked for the State of Michigan and then for the federal government in various roles.
She married Larry Dean Humphrey, “the apple of her eye,” to whom she remained married for 45 years until his death in 2018. During their shared years of federal employment, they traveled the breadth of the United States, taking increasingly more difficult roles within the government in Jacksonville, Fla., Sitka, Ak, New Orleans, La., and Ft. Worth, Texas, after which they retired back home to Michigan.
Charlotte was a loving mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She had eleven grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren.
Larry and Charlotte were regular vendors at the Trufant Flea Market where they sold their wares for many years. Charlotte had sold jewelry at in-home jewelry parties in the 1960’s and she had won awards for her salesmanship. One year she even won a color TV!
Charlotte was an avid gardener and was an amazing quilter who always had a baby quilt on hand for any new baby nearby.
She was a voracious reader and volunteered at the Kent County Library in Comstock Park for many years. One of her favorite things to do was to take her grandchildren to Mackinac Island over the years. She loved the island and sharing the experience with her grandchildren gave her great pride. Charlotte was a patriot. She loved God, country and freedom.
Charlotte was preceded in death by all of her siblings: Ethel Louise Ashton, Allen Rex Stone, Ruth Ann Stone, Wanita Sue Sutton and Michael Harvey Stone.
The family will receive visitors from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 18, at MKD Stegenga Funeral Chapel, Belmont. The funeral will be at 11 a.m Monday, Feb. 19, at Algoma Baptist Church, 10515 Grange Avenue NE, Rockford, with visitation one hour prior to the service.
Those who wish may make memorial donations to Algoma Baptist Church.
