Wilbur W. “Sonny” Jarvis, Jr.
December 25th, 1932 - February 21st, 2023
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Sonny's Obituary
Wilbur W. “Sonny” Jarvis, Jr., 90, formerly of St. Joseph, passed away Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at his home in Paw Paw.
Funeral Services & burial will be held 2:00 P.M. Thursday, February 23, 2023 at B’nai Sholom Cemetery, Crystal Ave., Benton Harbor, with Diane Yampolsky officiating. Military Rites will be conducted by the North Berrien Military Rites Team. Memorial donations in Sonny’s name may be made to Temple B’nai Shalom in Benton Harbor or Baby Henning Love’s Go Fund Me. https://gofund.me/1ea7629e Those wishing to sign Sonny’s Memory Book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com.
Sonny was born December 25, 1932 in Benton Harbor to Wilbur W. & Laura (Leady) Jarvis, Sr. He graduated from Benton Harbor High School, Class of 1951 and earned an Associates Degree from Benton Harbor Jr. College. Sonny then served his country in the US Army during the Korean War. Upon his discharge from the military, he earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Michigan Tech. On June 12, 1962 he married the former Annette Radom in Chicago. Sonny gained employment with AC Sparkplug in Milwaukee before returning to the Twin Cities and joining Whirlpool Corporation in the laundry group. During his employment, Sonny was responsible for twenty-three patents, before retiring after thirty-plus years in 1996. After Annette’s passing, he married the former Nadine Nelson on February 4, 2004 in South Haven. In 2019, he and Nadine opened Paw Paw Kayak Rentals in Paw Paw. Sonny was a member of Temple B’nai Shalom in Benton Harbor.
Sonny enjoyed fishing & boating, spending many weekends on the area lakes & Lake Michigan. His most memorable trip was to Canada with nephew Mike Radom an uncle Nic Sax. He owned fishing boats, speed boats and pontoons. Sonny was a master mechanic and loved tooling around in his shop. He loved everything about cars including working on them. He was the go-to-guy for family and friends that needed a handy man job. Sonny was an avid reader, specifically sci-fi, his favorite author being Isaac Asimov.
Family and friends were a big part of Sonny’s life. He was fortunate to be able to enjoy family vacations to California to visit his sister Harriette, Disney World in Florida with his grandchildren Rachael & Taylor, along with many other trips & family parties including the annual birthday parties for him on Christmas Day. This continued in retirement with his first wife Annette and for many years to follow with Nadine. Sonny loved his dogs starting with his first dog Brandy, Bandit, Topper and his current companion Murry.
Sonny is survived by his wife Nadine; his children-Ronald Jarvis of Fort Myers, FL, Darci Jarvis of St. Joseph, Rona (Harold) Goodrich of Paw Paw; his daughter-in-law Heather Busse of Illinois; six grandchildren-Rachael & Taylor Jarvis, Mariah Warner, Brandon Busse, Jacob & Megan Goodrich; several nieces & nephews; and his faithful service dog Murry. Sonny was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife Annette, his son William Busse, and his siblings-Betty Holmes, Harriette Dalziele, & Theda Jarvis. Ninety years of a life well lived.
Funeral Services & burial will be held 2:00 P.M. Thursday, February 23, 2023 at B’nai Sholom Cemetery, Crystal Ave., Benton Harbor, with Diane Yampolsky officiating. Military Rites will be conducted by the North Berrien Military Rites Team. Memorial donations in Sonny’s name may be made to Temple B’nai Shalom in Benton Harbor or Baby Henning Love’s Go Fund Me. https://gofund.me/1ea7629e Those wishing to sign Sonny’s Memory Book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com.
Sonny was born December 25, 1932 in Benton Harbor to Wilbur W. & Laura (Leady) Jarvis, Sr. He graduated from Benton Harbor High School, Class of 1951 and earned an Associates Degree from Benton Harbor Jr. College. Sonny then served his country in the US Army during the Korean War. Upon his discharge from the military, he earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Michigan Tech. On June 12, 1962 he married the former Annette Radom in Chicago. Sonny gained employment with AC Sparkplug in Milwaukee before returning to the Twin Cities and joining Whirlpool Corporation in the laundry group. During his employment, Sonny was responsible for twenty-three patents, before retiring after thirty-plus years in 1996. After Annette’s passing, he married the former Nadine Nelson on February 4, 2004 in South Haven. In 2019, he and Nadine opened Paw Paw Kayak Rentals in Paw Paw. Sonny was a member of Temple B’nai Shalom in Benton Harbor.
Sonny enjoyed fishing & boating, spending many weekends on the area lakes & Lake Michigan. His most memorable trip was to Canada with nephew Mike Radom an uncle Nic Sax. He owned fishing boats, speed boats and pontoons. Sonny was a master mechanic and loved tooling around in his shop. He loved everything about cars including working on them. He was the go-to-guy for family and friends that needed a handy man job. Sonny was an avid reader, specifically sci-fi, his favorite author being Isaac Asimov.
Family and friends were a big part of Sonny’s life. He was fortunate to be able to enjoy family vacations to California to visit his sister Harriette, Disney World in Florida with his grandchildren Rachael & Taylor, along with many other trips & family parties including the annual birthday parties for him on Christmas Day. This continued in retirement with his first wife Annette and for many years to follow with Nadine. Sonny loved his dogs starting with his first dog Brandy, Bandit, Topper and his current companion Murry.
Sonny is survived by his wife Nadine; his children-Ronald Jarvis of Fort Myers, FL, Darci Jarvis of St. Joseph, Rona (Harold) Goodrich of Paw Paw; his daughter-in-law Heather Busse of Illinois; six grandchildren-Rachael & Taylor Jarvis, Mariah Warner, Brandon Busse, Jacob & Megan Goodrich; several nieces & nephews; and his faithful service dog Murry. Sonny was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife Annette, his son William Busse, and his siblings-Betty Holmes, Harriette Dalziele, & Theda Jarvis. Ninety years of a life well lived.
Memorial Contributions
Baby Henning Love Go Fund Me
Temple B'nai Shalom-Benton Harbor
Service Details
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