Lenore Ruth Pontier

Lenore Ruth Pontier went to live with her Heavenly Father on September 25, 2019, at the age of 91.

Lenore was an extremely strong woman who kept an active schedule; she would go to the YMCA well into her eighties and did 40 minutes of backstroke at 5:30 in the morning. She held a patent on a writing tool for children. She worked and saved to put herself on a bus from New Jersey into New York City at age 15 to get voice lessons and later sang at Carnegie Hall. 

She was an extremely intelligent, gifted woman, who got her MSW from U of M in the forties, which was not the norm back then. She renewed her MSW up until age 88, in case she ever went back to work in the school system. Lenore recently went into a nursing home and was quite the social butterfly with her lady friends there. 

She joined her father and mother, Leonard and Jessina Pontier, sister Florence Pontier and brother, Robert Pontier in Heaven. 

Lenore was a loving mother and grandmother, who will be missed greatly by her son Mike Smalligan and grandchildren Matt and Shelly Smalligan. She is also survived by her sister Doris (Mike) Mauriello. 

Per her wishes, cremation has taken place.

Family will greet friends at a Visitation to remember Lenore Friday, October 11, 2019 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Memorial Alternatives, 2432 Fuller Ave NE, Grand Rapids.

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