Lucy Margaret Bohm

Obituary (1927 - 2003) - obit. brycefuneralhome

Lucy Margaret (née Coons) Bohm, of Northville, Michigan, formerly of Troy, NY, retired swimming instructor and trainer and fitness-over-50 instructor, died October 2, 2003, three days from her 76th birthday in Livonia, MI. Diagnosed with Parkinsonism in 2001, the disease progressed rapidly.

Born in Troy, to the late Madelyn and Norman F. Coons, a family with deep roots in upstate New York and New England, Lucy attended The Northfield Mount Hermon School and Russell Sage College. Lucy and Henry Bohm married in 1950 and after a year in Hawaii, a few years and several addresses in New York and New England, they became, for many years, the "western branch" of the family, making Michigan their home state from 1959 on.

While Henry became a professor at Wayne State University, Lucy joined the Wayne State Faculty Wives, the League of Women Voters, and Planned Parenthood. They raised their children in Huntington Woods, in a neighborhood full of other children and municipal activities for children, which guaranteed her participation in little league, swim team, dance recitals, punt-pass-and-kick contests, piano lessons, field trips, and scouting and camping adventures, as well as all the inherent "ferrying" and car-pooling.

In 1973, Lucy went back to school for a Master's degree in human kinetics from the University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario. Both in Michigan and in Illinois, during a five-year hiatus from Wayne, Lucy taught Red Cross swimming for all ages, trained the Red Cross trainers, and taught water exercise classes for senior citizens at various facilities, including Elmhurst College (IL) and Schoolcraft College (MI).

Lucy retired from teaching in 1995, but continued to keep fit swimming and walking until the Parkinsonism prevented her from doing so.

In addition to her husband, Lucy is survived by a daughter, Victoria; a son, Jeffrey; a daughter-in-law, Elaine Powell; a niece and five nephews, their spouses and children; plus numerous first, second, even third cousins, their children and grandchildren. Her brother, Richard Coons, predeceased her in 1976. The count for Lucy's in-law relatives stands just as high, and due in great part to Lucy's and Henry's penchant for extended driving expeditions to visit and gather with relatives and friends all over North America; a wonderful number of relatives on both sides know each other as more than just names on a holiday card or a family tree.

Relatives and friends are invited to a Memorial Service at the Gardner Earl Crematory Chapel at Oakwood Cemetery, Troy on Saturday May 1, 2004 at 11:30 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests gifts to Russell Sage College c/o Development Office 92 First Street Troy, NY 12180 in Lucy's memory.