Obituary: Opal Rae VanArsdale

Opal Rae VanArsdale, age 89, gently passed away on Monday, Jan. 13, 2020, at The Waters of Robertson care facility in Springfield, Tennessee. Interment, with a graveside service in remembrance and celebration of her life, will be held for family and friends at Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Traverse City, Michigan.

Mrs. VanArsdale was born Nov. 30, 1930, in Traverse City, Michigan. She was the fifth of seven children of Clarence Edward Bracebridge and Lulu Rose (Cook) Bracebridge. She was the devoted wife of James Lowry VanArsdale, and together they made their home in Flint, Michigan, where they raised five brilliant children.

Mrs. VanArsdale was a graduate of Cedar Lake Academy and worked as a medical office manager for many years prior to retirement. She honored her God through worship in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. She especially loved to add her voice to His glory through song and performed for many years with the traditional gospel group, The Heraldettes. 

In her later years, she enjoyed volunteering her time to help students at the Maranatha Adventist School and patients at the Veterans Hospital in Columbia, Missouri.

In addition to her husband and her parents, she is preceded in death by two brothers, four sisters and a daughter-in-law. 

Mrs. VanArsdale is survived by her children and their spouses: Robert and Sharon VanArsdale of Shady Cove, Oregon, David and Julie VanArsdale of York, Pennsylvania, Donald and Lovel VanArsdale of Hendersonville, Tennessee, Danny VanArsdale and Corinne Ranzinger of Cedar Hill, Tennessee, and Patricia and Brook Powers of Agat, Guam; and by 13 wonderful grandchildren and 12 beautiful great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations may be made to either the Dementia Society of America or to the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Mrs. VanArsdale’s memory.

Those we hold closest to our hearts never truly leave us – instead, they live on through the love and laughter that they brought into our lives, and also in the kindness they have shown us, which we in turn, share with others. Thank you, Mom and Grandma, we love you and miss you.

Please visit lifestorytc.com to sign the guestbook, share your thoughts with the family and more.  Life Story Funeral Home, Traverse City.