Avalon Marie Sass

Avalon M. Sass Grosse Pointe Farms resident Avalon M. Sass, "Lonnie," 93, died Friday, March 13, 2015. She was the loving wife of Walter, whom she married Aug. 20, 1949. She is survived by her son, Ronald and daughter, Deborah. Mrs. Sass graduated nursing school in 1947 and worked as a registered nurse at Grace Hospital and St. John Hospital in Detroit for 25 years. She went into private duty nursing and later industrial nursing, where she retired in 1986 from Precision Spring Corp. While her children were growing up, she was recognized as the neighborhood nurse, to whom children on the block with a cut or bruise came for treatment. She was active in her children's activities serving as a den mother in Cub Scouts and troop leader in Brownies and Girl Scouts. She volunteered with the Little League, school PTAs, Nursing Sorority Guild and Mt. Zion Lutheran Church. In her younger years, she enjoyed various sports, including swimming and golf. She was a member of the Otsego Ski Club and a league bowler for "The Little Cafe" in Detroit. Mrs. Sass was an avid crossword puzzle worker and had to read her "News" or "Free Press" every day. She especially loved to follow the Detroit Tigers. Mrs. Sass had a passion for dogs. In the 1940s and '50s, she bred and trained Irish setters. She loved to travel and upon high school graduation, took her first cross-country trek to California along old Route 66 in a 1937 Ford Coupe. She later traveled to Europe and the Caribbean. Each August, the family would map out a two-week vacation taking them to a different part of the country. Eventually, they visited all 50 states and most of Canada. Mrs. Sass possessed a creative artistry especially evident in her porcelain ceramics of figurines of young women in Antebellum gowns and turn-of-the-century dresses. She also created ceramic holiday scenes, vases, candy dishes and serviceware. A funeral service was held March 18 at A.H. Peters Funeral Home, Grosse Pointe Woods. Donations may be made to the American Heart Association, Greater Midwest Affiliate, Memorial and Tributes Lockbox, 3816 Paysphere Circle, Chicago, IL 60674, or the Michigan Humane Society, 30300 Telegraph, Suite 220, Bingham Farms, MI 48025.

Funeral Home:

A. H. Peters Funeral Home of Grosse Pointe

20705 Mack Avenue

Grosse Pointe Woods, MI

US 48236