Mildred Arlene Sparks, 87, of Lawton, passed away Sept. 21, 2022, at Bronson Methodist Hospital, Kalamazoo. She was born Jan. 19, 1935, in Kalamazoo, daughter of the late Warren and Marion Corey, sister of MaryJo (Scott) Hendrixson, and her brother, the late James Corey.
She grew up on a farm in Lawton and graduated from Lawton High School, then attended Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo.
Mildred married the late Lloyd Sparks on April 17, 1954, and had five wonderful children, Jerry (late Pam) Sparks, David (Angela) Sparks and John (Karen) Sparks. Also surviving are 10 grandchildren, Lloyd, Krissy, Shaun, Ashley, David, Sarah, Amanda, Matthew Sparks and Tommy Camila La Violete; along with many great-grandchildren; and great-great-grandchildren.
Mildred was preceded in death by her son, Tom Sparks; and her daughter, Patricia (Joseph) German.
Mildred and Lloyd built their house on the family farmland. She was employed at Honee Bear Canning Co., Lawton, from 1962 to 1980. After retiring, she traveled and would spend her winter months in New Mexico. Her hobbies included gambling at casinos and bingo. She would play her 30 cards, plus the cards of her friends that were sitting next to her, letting them know when they had a bingo. She was a loving mother, grandmother, and friend. She enjoyed family gatherings and would always make a surprise dish that everybody would love. When you would ask her for a recipe, her response was… “well…I put a dash, a shake, and I didn’t have that, so I added this instead.” It was always a family joke. She will be greatly missed as she was the rock in the Sparks family.
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