Mary June (Morningstar) Brouwer, 81, of Fort Wayne, previously of Monroeville and Hoagland, Indiana, died Tuesday morning, September 5, 2006, at Englewood Health and Rehabilitation Center in Fort Wayne. Mary was born on April 16, 1925, on Darrow Avenue in Fort Wayne to Willard O. (Bill) Morningstar and Mable F. (Meads) Morningstar. Mary was proud to have graduated from South Side High School and worked at the GE Supercharger as a confidential clerk during World War II. She married Russell C. Brouwer on October 25, 1947. During her time on earth, Mary passed on to others her gifts of caring, compassion, and kindness; as her illness progressed, her family and friends mourned the loss of the person she had been. She was a devoted mother; and she was delighted by the birth of four grandchildren within a 35 month period in the early 1980s. She was involved with her grandchildren, always finding the right Happy Meal toys for each one, helping them make caramel apples and crafts, and attending their events and performances. A talented artist in her youth, she continued to do art projects, fabric, and needlecrafts until her illness took this capability away. She was a member of Antioch Lutheran Church, a Past Matron of the Order of the Eastern Star, and a past officer of the Madison Township Cheerful Workers. Mary was known for her love of cats and ice cream, which she passed on to her family; it was certainly evident that the cats returned her love. Mary was preceded in death by her husband, Russell C. Brouwer in 1981, and by her parents, and her sister and brother, Isabel Taylor and Wayne Morningstar. Mary is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Wanda and Roger Knautz of Park Ridge, Illinois, and son and daughter-in-law, Douglas and Victoria Brouwer of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and four grandchildren, Jeremy Knautz, Adam Brouwer, Jillian (Phillip) Fox, and Michael Brouwer, her sister-in-law, Elizabeth Morningstar, and dear nieces, nephews and cousins. Memorials may be made to Antioch Lutheran Church, the Alzheimers Association, Shriners Hospital, Southern Care Hospice, or the donors choice. Calling will be at Zwick & Jahn Funeral Home, Jacobs Chapel, in Monroeville from 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM, and 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM on Friday; Eastern Star Services will be at 6:30 PM. The Funeral will be at Antioch Lutheran Church, Hoagland, IN at 10:30 AM on Saturday, with calling at the church beginning at 9:30 AM.
