Fern Evelyn Rudolph

May 26, 1921 - December 18, 2010

Fern Evelyn Rudolph, age 89, of Cadillac passed away Saturday evening, Dec. 18, 2010 with family present under the compassionate care of Sunnyside Senior Living in Cadillac. Fern was born on May 26, 1921 to William J. and Josephine Mae (Marvin) Christensen in Cadillac and had lived her entire life here. As a young woman, she worked at Mercy Hospital as a nurse\'s aide where she developed a lifelong compassion for the sick and elderly. Fern enjoyed playing volleyball with the Cass School women\'s team, bowling at Parkview lanes, the Westside Ladies Card Club, snowmobiling, traveling the country and music. She continued to be active in area square dances until her health forced her to stop the last few years. She was a fantastic cook, a loving mother, grandmother & great-grandmother, and an ardent supporter of social justice issues. Although she never learned to read music, she was an exceptional pianist, playing by ear. She is survived by her husband Kenneth C. Rudolph of Cadillac; daughter, April (Jeff) Anderson-Smith of Traverse City; son Michael (Deborah) Rudolph of Tustin; granddaughter, Lorraine (Marc) Wistrand of Traverse City; grandsons: Brian (Bethany) Rudolph of Otisville and Timothy (Tabitha) Rudolph of Charlevoix; granddaughter Leah (Jerrod) Braman of Onondaga; grandson-in-law, Phillip Lewis of Plymouth; great-grandchildren Eric, Aaron, Seth, Lauren, Joshua, Christopher, Bailee, Bristol, Tristan and Thomas; her brothers: Jack (Helen) Christensen and Gary (Darlene) Christensen; and sister-in-law, Louise Rudolph as well as several nieces and nephews. She is also survived by her faithful and protective cat Napoleon. She was preceded in death by her parents, father and mother-in-law, George Peter and Hazel Agnes Rudolph, son-in-law, Ronald Anderson, granddaughters Lisa Marie Anderson and Michele (Anderson) Lewis, brothers-in-law; Bruce and Donald Keith Rudolph, and Lloyd Behl and sisters-in-law Ruth Behl and Jean Rudolph. Funeral services will be held 1:00 PM Thursday, December 23, 2010 at Peterson Funeral Home in Cadillac with Mr. Brian Rudolph officiating. Burial will be at Maple Hill Cemetery in Cadillac. Friends may meet the family at the funeral home from 6-8 PM Wednesday. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society or the charity of ones choice. An online guestbook is available at www.petersonfh.com.