Sept. 9, 1933 — Nov. 15, 2015

Mary Ann Brothers, 82, of Niles, Michigan died Sunday morning, Nov. 15, 2015, at her home from the effects of a house fire.

She was born on Sept. 9, 1933, on the family farm in Niles Township – which her predecessors had purchased from the Rev. Edward Sorin, C.S.C. — to Edward Francis and Cecelia Josephine (Pawlak) Brothers. She was graduated from Niles High School, and has lived on the farm all of her life (except for a few years that they lived in Bertrand, a mile south). She was employed in the former optometry office of Burgess D. Rathburn, and then began a career at the United States Department of Agriculture’s former Niles Biological Control Station.

Miss Brothers was a member of Saint Mary Catholic Church in Niles, and she helped care for some of the graves at Saint Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery in Bertrand. She also enjoyed gardening, especially flowers.

She was preceded in death by her parents, and by her siblings, Edward P. Brothers, Agnes M. Lindgren, Walter W. Brothers, and Helen Minarik.

Surviving family includes a sister, Lucia (Ralph) Hendershott of Niles; and several nieces and nephews.

The Mass of Christian Burial for Mary Brothers will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015, at Saint Mary Catholic Church in Niles by the Rev. Alphonse Savarimuthu, MSFS of the parish. Committal Rites will be read at Silverbrook Cemetery in Niles.

The family will receive relatives and friends on Monday, from 6 until 8 p.m. at the Halbritter Funeral Home in Niles with recitation of The Rosary at 7:30 p.m. Contributions in memory of Mary may be made to Saint Mary Catholic Church or to the Niles Senior Center.

www.halbritterfunerals.com