Joseph A. Pethe

Jul 10, 1925 - May 6, 1989

Former city resident drowns in boat accident near Bangor

SOUTH BEND - Joseph A. Pethe, 63, of 304 Tannery Drive, Coloma, formerly of South Bend, drowned Saturday when his homemade boat capsized on Van Auken Lake near Bangor. Mr. Pethe's body, which was found floating face down, was pulled from the lake by occupants of a pontoon boat, Michigan State Police officers said. Pethe was alone in the 10-foot plywood boat.

Police speculated he stood up either to lower the boat motor or fill a water bucket. The shift of his weight caused the boat to capsize, police said. Officers said there was speculation Pethe may have suffered a heart attack. Because no autopsy will be performed, however, the cause of death will officially be listed as drowning. Mr.

Pethe was an industrial engineer. He had been employed by the former Studebaker Corp. He had also worked for the Koehring Co. in Enid, Okla., and St. Joseph from 1965 until 1 1975. He most recently had been self-employed.

He was born July 10, 1925, in Hammond, Ind.

His wife, the former Marjorie J. Kifowit, survives, along with two daughters, Anne Clamoungou and Gail Pethe, both of Seattle; two sons, Mark of Seattle and Bruce of Watervliet; four grandchildren; two sisters, Rosalie Lewis of Kalamazoo and Margaret Janczak of South Bend; and two brothers, John of Carmel, Ind., and Benedict of Florida.

He was a life member of American Institute of Industrial Engineers.

Services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Davidson Chapel of Florin Funeral Service, Coloma. Burial will be in Edwardsburg Cemetery. Friends may call from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday in the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to Wildlife Fund of Michigan

Sources: Ancestry.com, Newspapers.com and FindAGrave.com

04/08/2025 EJS

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/51184289/joseph-ae-pethe