Barbara Hinds

March 5, 2011

TRAVERSE CITY — Barbara D. Hinds, 98, of Traverse City (Yuba), passed away peacefully March 5, 2011, at the Grand Traverse Pavilions. Barbara was born on Dec. 5, 1912, in Escanaba, to the late E. William and Ingeborg (Gronblad) Nelson.After moving to the Ann Arbor area during her early childhood, Barbara graduated from high school at the young age of 16. She then furthered her education at the University of Michigan, where she earned her bachelor's degree and then her master's degree in Library Science. While attending the U of M, she met Spencer Coleman Hinds. They married on May 24, 1941. Shortly thereafter Spencer took a job in Flint, where they moved and started their family. Here they had their three children, Jim, Bill and Karen. After Spencer and his partners started their own company in Detroit, the family lived in Birmingham and then Bloomfield Hills. The Hinds family fell in love with the Traverse City area in the early 1950s, back when all of M-72 was not yet even paved. Barb and Spen found cabins for rent at Pine Acres in Yuba, on Grand Traverse Bay. They spent many family vacations there and then eventually bought the property, where they built a cottage and later their retirement home. Barbara loved to entertain for her family, her husband's business and for large neighborhood get-togethers. Her home was always open and comfortable, especially for her children and their friends. The dinner table always had room for extra place settings. She was very involved with all of her children's activities. Barbara was also very involved with her church, Christ Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills.In her spare time, Barbara enjoyed playing the piano, knitting, oil painting, doing crossword puzzles, and despite her brown thumb, tending to her rose garden. In her later years her greatest joy was her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She didn't want to miss a minute with them. Barbara is survived by her children, Bill (Brooke) Hinds, of Connecticut, and Karen (Barry) Pierce, of Charlevoix; her daughter-in-law, Shae Hinds, of Portage; her grandchildren, Andrea (Kevin) Patrick, of Ontario, Canada, and Steven Hinds, of California; and her great-grandchildren, Hannah and Cole Patrick. Barbara was preceded in death by her husband, Spencer; and son, Jim. A memorial service celebrating Barbara's life will be held on Saturday, May, 7, 2011, with visitation beginning at 2 p.m., followed by the service at 3 p.m., at the Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home. A gathering at the family home will follow. In honor of Barbara, please consider The Scleroderma Foundation if you would like to make a memorial contribution. Please visit www.reynolds-jonkhoff.com to sign Barbara's online guestbook and share your thoughts and memories with the family. The family is being served by Reynolds-Jonkhoff Funeral Home and Cremation Services.