Submitted by: Dan Rich

Joseph V. Kline

July 5, 1934 - April 1, 2002

South Bend Tribune 4/3/2002

Joseph Kline, 67, of Austin Lake, Portage, Mich., passed away peacefully on Monday, April 1, in his home, after a courageous two-year battle with cancer.

Joe's life began on July 5, 1934, in South Bend, Ind., the son of Clarence "Jake" and Edith (Sunderland) Kline. He served in the U.S. Army from January 1954 to December 1955 and was stationed in Germany as a medic. Joe graduated from WMU with a business degree. At the time of his retirement, Joe was employed by Lennox Industries as a territory sales manager. He was a member of the Portage-Schoolcraft Eagles Aries and the VFW Post #827. Joe will be forever remembered by his family and friends as the ultimate Notre Dame enthusiast. His other passions included living on Austin Lake, fishing, sports, and socializing with his numerous friends and cohorts.

Joe was preceded in death by his father, Jake in 1989, and mother, Edith in January 2002.

He is survived by his wife of 17 years, Mary Ann; three children, Wendy Kline, Michael Kline and Shelly (Darin) Meyer, all of Kalamazoo, Mich.; five grandchildren, Perie Kline of Viroqua, Wis., Josh, Matt and Joey Conway, and Sam Meyer, all of Kalamazoo; three sisters, Carol Martin of Baltimore, Md., Shirley Paris of Thousand Oaks, Calif., and Mardi Spraul of St. Louis, Mo.; a brother, David (Danielle) Kline of South Bend; and former wife, Aggie Campbell of Richland, Mich.; mother-in-law, Elnora Walcott; and two sisters-in-law, Susan and Nancy Walcott, all of Grand Rapids.

Cremation will take place. The family will be present to receive friends today, April 3, from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. in the Betzler Funeral Home, Kalamazoo, 1-800-822-7594. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Thursday, April 4, in St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church. Fr. Bob Flickinger, celebrant. Food and fellowship will be shared following the Mass at the Birches, 3082 South 9th Street. Private interment will take place at Ft. Custer National Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to the Jake Kline Scholarship Fund, c/o Development Office, 1100 Grace Hall, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556; or to Hospice of Greater Kalamazoo.

Editor: His father Jake Kline was the baseball coach at Notre Dame for many years.