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Extended obituaries

For summary obituaries of all Chelsea-area funeral homes, see the main Obituaries page.

Extended obituaries for:

Jeffrey Howard Flintoft, owner of the Chelsea Market.
First Lt. Joel Christopher Gentz, killed in action while on a rescue mission in Afghanistan.
Charles F. Krausse, M.D., former Chief of Staff and Chief of the Emergency Room at Chelsea Community Hospital.
Daniel S. Whitesall, Chelsea Police Department Dispatcher.

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Jeffrey Howard Flintoft of Grass Lake passed away at his home surrounded by family and friends on August 14, 2010. He was 64. Born in Ann Arbor on December 28, 1945, Jeffrey was the second son of Howard “Red” Flintoft and Anna N. Flintoft (née Schneider).

Jeff graduated from Chelsea High School in 1964 and Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Arts in History in 1969. He was a veteran of the United States Army, serving from 1970 to 1972. On December 11, 1976, he married Carolyn Smith, his high school sweetheart and love of his life. She survives in addition to his two daughters, Beth Flintoft (Jonathan Tauber) of Chicago and Joan Flintoft of Washington, D.C.

Jeff owned and operated the Chelsea Market for many years. Formerly Schneider’s Grocery, it was established in 1914 by his maternal grandfather, Oscar Schneider, and later owned and operated by his father, Howard “Red” Flintoft, and uncle, Carl Schneider. In 1928, the store was moved to the corner building at 125 South Main Street and in 1946, Red Flintoft expanded it to include the meat market.

Jeff was known for his genuine, kind personality, extraordinary good humor, incredible work ethic, and willingness to go out of the way for his customers.

In addition to his wife and children, Jeff is survived by his siblings, Peter Flintoft (Priscilla) of Chelsea, Kim Flintoft (Beverly) of Chelsea, Mary Jill Scarzo (Antonio) of Grayling, and Howard Flintoft (Jacquelyn Luedtke) of Chelsea, and step-siblings Jean Walters of Chelsea and Ronald Early of Tennessee; five cousins, nine nieces and seven nephews. Jeff was preceded in death by his father, mother and step-mother.

Visitation will be held 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, August 18, 2010 at the Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home, 901 N. Main Street, Chelsea.

Expressions of sympathy may be made to Chelsea Community Hospital Cancer Center.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, August 19, 2010 at the Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home.

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First Lt. Joel Christopher Gentz of Las Vegas, Nevada, formerly of Chelsea, 25, was killed in action on June 9 while on a rescue mission in Afghanistan.

He was born July 9, 1984 in Rochester, New York, the son of Steve & Judy (Rowe) Gentz. Joel was baptized and confirmed at St. Paul United Church of Christ.

Joel graduated from Chelsea High School in 2002. While in high school, he was active in band, cross country, swimming, football, and was on the tennis team for 4 years. He was a member of the National Honor Society. Joel earned his 2nd degree black belt in Tae Kwan Do.

Joel graduated with honors from Purdue University in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in Aeronautical Engineering. While at Purdue, Joel was a cadet in Air Force ROTC Detachment 220. A member of Arnold Air Society (the ROTC Honor Society), Joel was honored four years in row as he was chosen by his fellow students to receive the “Warrior Spirit” award.

On June 7, 2008, Joel married Kathryn Sullivan, and she survives. Joel was an avid outdoorsman and athlete. He and Kathryn loved camping, running, hiking and backpacking.

Joel was stationed at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, NM where he completed Combat Rescue Officer training. He later stationed at Nellis AFB, and was deployed to Afghanistan April 24, 2010.

In addition to his beloved wife Kathryn, Joel is survived by his parents, his brother, Jared, and sister, Rachel, all of Chelsea; two grandmothers, Barb Gentz of Howard City, MI and Jeanne Rowe of Rochester, NY; mother-in-law, Anne Sullivan; father-in-law, Patrick (Amanda) Sullivan; brother and sister-in-law, Shawn and Emilie Sullivan; his aunts and uncles, Sharon & Terry Freeman of Raleigh, NC, John & Beth Rowe of Rochester, NY, Karen & Ken Hannah of Buffalo, NY, Cheryl Borner of Buffalo, NY; and many cousins. He was preceded in death by two grandfathers, Ralph Gentz and Bill Rowe, and an Uncle Dave Borner.

Funeral services will be held Thursday, June 24, at 10:00 a.m. at St. Paul United Church of Christ, with Rev. Curt DeMars-Johnson officiating. The family will receive friends at St. Paul Wednesday, June 23, from noon-3 p.m. and 5-8 pm. A private burial will take place at Oak Grove East Cemetery, Chelsea. Memorial contributions may be made to the “Joel C. Gentz Memorial Fund” at Chelsea State Bank.

Obituary provided by Cole Funeral Home, which will be handling the arrangements.

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Charles F. Krausse, M.D., age 89, passed away Wednesday, March 17, 2010 at his home. He was born and grew up in an isolated farming community, southeast of Petoskey, MI. He received his first education at a country school. Following leaving the farm, he worked for about two years before joining the Army in 1942, serving for four years during WWII. After his release from the Army he continued to work and prepare for college by home study. He attended Central Michigan University (then Central Michigan College) completing the requirements for a Bachelor of Arts Degree in three years, graduating with honors.

He then attended the University of Michigan Medical School. Following his graduation from U of M Medical School he spent five years at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor: one year as an intern and four years on the General Surgery Service. He was certified by the American Board of Surgery in 1962.

During his residency in General Surgery he spent several weeks in Chelsea in 1959 and 1960 during a Locum Tenens for Dr. Joseph Fisher. This was his introduction to Chelsea. Upon completion of his residency in 1961 he returned to Chelsea to share an office with Dr. Fisher for 11 years. Since then he has been mainly in solo practice.

His life since graduation from medical school has been devoted to medicine and surgery with the greatest emphasis on patient care.

He was a member of the Surgery Staff at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital from 1961 to 1970, resigning from the Active Staff after the move of St. Joseph Mercy Hospital to Ypsilanti in 1970.

He joined the staff of Chelsea Community Hospital in 1970. He was Chief of Staff from 1974 to 1976. He was also Chairman of the Emergency Room for about 15 years.

His most important, guarded, secret distinction has been that he graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School without ever spending a single day in High School.

He completed his 44th year of practice in Chelsea.

He was the prime instigator of planning and building the Village Professional Building at 515 N. Main St. on property that he owned. He practiced in this building which was also occupied by offices of two dentists, a pediatrician, and an urologist until he retired in 2005 at the age of 85.

Survivors include his wife, Mildred T. (Kuslak) Krausse of Ann Arbor; three children, Mary E. Krausse of Ann Arbor, Charles G. Krausse of Jeffersonville, IN, and Jerilynn Tucker of Holland, MI; and two grandchildren, Elliot P. Tucker and Dylan R. Tucker. He was preceded in death by his parents; one son, Gerald Lee Krausse; and two sisters, Marie Luebke and Frances Krausse.

Funeral services will be held Monday, March 22, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. at Peace Lutheran Church, 8260 Jackson Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48103 with Pastor Larry G. Courson officiating. Burial will follow at Clements Cemetery, Lima Twp. The family will receive friends at the Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home, Chelsea, on Sunday from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Joseph Mercy Hospice, Peace Lutheran Church, or the Chelsea Community Hospital Cancer Center.

Obituary provided by Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home.

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Daniel S. Whitesall of Chelsea, MI, age 57, passed away suddenly from a heart-related illness on Tuesday, March 16, 2010 at Chelsea Community Hospital.

He was born on January 16, 1953 in Dearborn, MI, the son of Robert D. and Deloras R. (Machnik) Whitesall. On August 3, 1973, he married Denise Rose DiGiusto in Allen Park, and she survives.

Dan had worked as a brick mason then at Longworth Plating in Chelsea for 24 years and most recently as a dispatcher for the Chelsea Police Department for 8 years. He loved hunting, fishing, playing Euchre, and U of M Football.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by two children, Daniel T. Whitesall and Amy R. Whitesall, both of Chelsea; three siblings, Tim (Pat) Whitesall of North Lake, Terry (Donna) Whitesall of Jackson, and Barbara Sue (Rudy) Hertlein of Ann Arbor; two sisters-in-law, Maria (Jim) Elmore of Gregory and Annette (Dean) Mitchell of Adrian; and several nieces, nephews, co-workers, neighbors, and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents and a special aunt, Virginia Migda.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, March 20, 2010 at 2:00 p.m. from the Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home with Rev. Joy Barrett officiating. Private burial will take place at a later date. The family will receive friends from 12:00 noon until the hour of service. Contributions may be made to the American Heart Association or the family.

Obituary provided by Staffan-Mitchell Funeral Home.

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