Carolyn Lou (Case) Tourangeau

Carolyn Lou (Case) Tourangeau, 84, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, died peacefully on Thursday, March 28, 2024, in Kalamazoo with family at her side.

Carolyn was born July 2, 1939, in Battle Creek, Michigan, the daughter of Glenn R. and Roselyn M. (Barningham) Case. She grew up in Avon Lake, Ohio, and graduated from Avon Lake High School. She became a Registered Nurse through St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing in Cleveland, OH. In her younger years, she held nursing positions at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C., West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA, Leila Hospital in Battle Creek, and Mercy Hospital in Muskegon. She became a full-time mother for her children’s early years until she returned to nursing at Borgess Medical Center in 1978 and ultimately retired from Borgess in 1999.  

Larry and Carolyn’s dear friends, Jan and George Desmarais, set them up on a blind date in 1963. That date and the ones to follow went so well that she married Lawrence Tourangeau at St. Mary Catholic Church in Marshall on October 24, 1964. They were married for 56 years until Larry died on June 1, 2021. Their love and dedication to each other continue to inspire the entire family. She loved her home and the idyllic life they built for their children on Yorkshire Drive in Richland, MI, starting in the early 1970’s. In her later years, she enjoyed driving through the old neighborhood to reminisce about all the good times the family enjoyed.

Carolyn was a St. Ambrose Catholic Church member in Parchment and a former long-time member of St. Ann Catholic Church in Augusta. 

Carolyn had a caregiver’s heart and thrived when helping others. She cared for their elderly Aunt Nilla and her dad, Glenn, in Larry and Carolyn’s home for several years, allowing Nilla and Glenn to enjoy their final years. She helped her son, Mike, navigate the early years of his brain cancer diagnosis.  Most importantly, she cared for her husband, Larry, during the final years of his Alzheimer’s battle despite the physical toll it took on her.   Carolyn was an active volunteer with many organizations, including the Girl Scouts, Cub Scout Den Mother, Parent Teacher Organization (past President), St. Ann Church guild member and Council member, Eucharistic minister, Red Cross bloodmobile, Garden Club, Gull Lake Sports Boosters, Kellogg Bird Sanctuary and most recently Lending Hands.  

The volunteer work she most enjoyed was babysitting the grandchildren.  She was an active part of their lives as they grew up. She loved them dearly, and that love was, and is, returned. She valued the decades-long relationship with their Marriage Encounter group, which became an extended family. Larry and Carolyn spent many years traveling. Her family is comforted knowing Carolyn and Larry are enjoying a reunion in Heaven with each other.

Surviving are their children, Marc (Jenn) Tourangeau of Kalamazoo, Michael (Melia) Tourangeau of Pittsburgh, PA, Laura (Matthew) Januszewski of Howell, Jeffrey Tourangeau of Jacksonville, FL; seven grandchildren, Cameron Berry, Olivia and Zacharie Tourangeau, and Morgan, Claudia, Owen, and Ella Januszewski; one great-grandchild, River Berry; a sister, Marilyn Case of Marshall; a sister-in-law, Mary Tourangeau of Seattle, WA and several nieces, nephews, cousins, and their families. Carolyn was preceded in death by her husband, Larry, her parents and her brother, Tom Case. 

The family will receive friends from 4:00-6:00 p.m. April 21, 2024, at Farley Estes Dowdle Funeral Cremation Preneed Care, Richland Chapel, 9170 East D Avenue, Richland, MI 49083. Rev. David Pinto will celebrate a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:30 a.m. Monday, April 22, 2024, at St. Ann Catholic Church, 12648 East D Avenue, Augusta, MI 49012. The service will be live-streamed at https://www.youtube.com/c/StAnnChurch/videos. Committal and inurnment will follow at Fort Custer National Cemetery at 1:30 p.m. Monday, with a luncheon to follow. 

Memorial contributions may be made to Alzheimer’s Research Foundation, 620 Sea Island Road, Suite 288, St. Simons Island, GA 31522; Centrica Care Navigators of Southwest Michigan, 7100 Stadium, Kalamazoo, MI 49009, or Lending Hands of Michigan, 4570 Commercial Ave, Suite E, Portage, MI 49002 or a charity of one’s choice. Personal messages for the family may be placed at www.farleyestesdowdle.com.