Mary Elisabeth Vanalsten

Mary Elisabeth Forrest VanAlsten, age 87 of Midland died Friday, October 18, 2013 at MidMichigan Medical Center. Mary was born in Greene, New York on April 28, 1926. She was the fourth child of John R. and Elisabeth (Sauter) Forrest. Her parents had moved to New York State in 1921 from South Dakota, where they had farmed. Her maternal grandparents, German immigrants, had been pioneers in the Dakota Territory from about 1880. Her paternal grandparents had immigrated from Scotland at about the same time, settling first in Illinois, then moving on to "homestead" further west. Mary's Scottish grandmother, Mary Glendenning, was 19 when she came to the United States, as the oldest of seven children, with their widowed mother.

Mary grew up in Greene and graduated from Greene High School in 1944. She enrolled at Keuka College, Keuka Park, New York where she was active in many campus organizations, including the drama club and student publications. She was editor of the college year book in her senior year.

After graduation in 1948, she became assistant to the director of public relations at Alfred University, Alfred, New York. This opened a career path that she followed later at Geneva College, Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania and Madonna University, Livonia, Michigan. At Alfred, she met and married on August 20, 1950, Roy L. VanAlsten, a ceramic engineering graduate of New York State College of Ceramics. They made their home in New Brighton, PA, then in the Dearborn, MI area, where Roy was employed for 35 years in the Scientific Research Laboratory of the Ford Motor Co.

Mary was active in her community of Redford Township; serving on the local Board of Education, in Girl Scouts of Metro Detroit, and PTA. She was a member of the Evergreen Village Presbyterian and St. Andrew's Presbyterian Churches. In 1955, she was involved in the creation of a local newspaper, The Redford Observer, the nucleus of which became a large suburban chain of Hometown Papers, later purchased by Gannett. Mary became director of public relations at Madonna College in 1973, when the college had 800 students. In the next 13 years, the college became a university and the enrollment had grown to nearly 4000 students. When she retired from college fundraising and development in 1986, Mary and her husband, Roy, volunteered at Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. They moved to Midland in 1995 and continued their volunteerism at the Midland Center for the Arts and the community food pantry network. They were members of Memorial Presbyterian Church. They enjoyed 22 winters at Siesta Key, Florida.

Mary is survived by her husband of 63 years, Roy; children, William VanAlsten, Regional General Manager of GE Aircraft operations in Paris, France, Janet VanAlsten, Attorney and Executive Director, Global Benefits with AMGEN in Thousand Oaks, CA, Dr. John VanAlsten, Senior Scientist with Vertex Pharmaceutical Co., Cambridge, MA; seven grandchildren, Andrew VanAlsten, Baltimore, MD, Laura VanAlsten, San Diego, CA, Christopher Dion, Royal Oak, MI, Elisabeth Dion, Livonia, MI, Stephanie VanAlsten, Niantic, CT, William Craig VanAlsten, Ann Arbor, MI and Sarah VanAlsten, Niantic, CT. In addition to her parents, Mary was preceded in death by siblings, Rosella Miller of Tallahassee, FL, Marjorie Reidel of Goshen, IN, and William M. Forrest of Wellesley Island, NY.

In keeping with her wishes, cremation has been arranged through the Wilson MILLER Funeral Home where there will be no services. Mary's cremains will be buried in the family plot in Valley View Cemetery, Sherrill, NY. Memorial tributes may be made to the Moore Memorial Library, Greene, NY 13778 or to Doctors Without Borders, PO Box 5022, Hagerstown, MD 21741. Personal messages of condolence to the family may be offered at www.wilson-miller.com