Person Page 2,139

Charles Walter Snover was born on 6 January 1923 in Butman Township, Gladwin, Michigan.^1,2 He and Shirley Faye Ruffertshofer were married on 27 May 1948 in Crown Point, Lake, Indiana.¹ He died on 1 June 2011, at age 88, in Danville, Hendricks, Indiana.² He was buried in Cremated.³

Air Corps- 16 Nov. 1942.⁴ Charles W. Snover

By the Midland Daily News | Posted: Friday, June 3, 2011 10:45 am

Charles W. Snover passed away June 1, 2011, at Hospice in Avon, Ind.

Charles is survived by his sister, Ruth Snover McKay (Larry) of Midland; brother, Clarence Snover (Pat) of Spokane, Wash.; children, Diane Snover Howard (Kevin) of Midland, Lynn Snover Chronister (Don) of Ft. Smith, Ark., Carol Jones of Danville, Ind., and Timothy Snover of Indianapolis, Ind.; seven grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.

Charles will be cremated and a private gathering will occur on Sunday, June 5, 2011.

Shirley Faye Ruffertshofer was born on 18 February 1926 in Auburn, Bay, Michigan.^1,2 She and Charles Walter Snover were married on 27 May 1948 in Crown Point, Lake, Indiana.¹ She died on 18 February 2001, at age 75, in Indianapolis, Marion, Indiana.²

Clarence David (Smokey) Snover was born on 18 September 1935 in Butman Township, Gladwin, Michigan.¹ He died on 31 December 2016, at age 81, in Spokane, Spokane, Washington.

Clarence David Snover, long time sports reporter for the Bay City Times, was the son of George Waltriff Snover Jr. and Lillian Claire Wright, and a 4th great-grandson to Anna Elizabeth Windemuth. Born 18 Sep 1935 in Butman Township, Gladwin County, Michigan, Clarence just recently passed way 31 Dec 2016 in Spokane, Washington. I'm including here a very nice online article about him that was published in the Bay City paper after his death.

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Clarence Snover's passing is like loss of best friend to Bay City sports
By Lee Thompson
January 02, 2017

BAY CITY, MI - Mr. Snover was one of my favorite people even before I found out what he did for a living.

When I was about 8 years old, he would drop by and watch the Detroit Lions and drink a Pabst Blue Ribbon with my father. But Mr. Snover would also take time to talk to me about the Detroit Tigers or ask to see my ballglove, knowing I was wild about baseball. And he would even take me on in a game of ping-pong.
What little kid wouldn't love Mr. Snover?

Then I discovered that Mr. Snover was Clarence Snover, sports writer for The Bay City Times.

When Snover died Saturday of congestive heart failure at the age of 81, his hometown community lost a beloved figure. And I lost a mentor.

I grew up admiring the man known by many names. "I'm Smokey on the East Side and Snuffy on the West Side, and I don't know why," he used to say. To me he was Mr. Snover, father of a wonderful Elm Street family, coach of Finkbeiner's Tropical Fish at Northwest Little League and the guy who wrote those stories in my newspaper.
That last part truly enthralled me. I devoured The Times sports section, where I could follow not only Tram and Lou, but also Mike Freed and Mike Reitzel and all the other sensational Bay City ballplayers. Big things were happening on the ball diamonds for All Saints and T.L. Handy and the Bay County Pony and Colt teams, and it seemed like the first thing I read on every story was "By Clarence Snover, Times Writer."

He even once wrote a column about my father, Jack Thompson, and his unwavering devotion to the Lions.

Mr. Snover was not a writer by trade. He worked at The Times in the press shop long before he wrote his first story. When an opening arose in the sports department in the 1970s, sports editor Mike Sturm surely saw what thousands of readers saw. Here is a guy who cares about his community, is genuinely excited by local sports exploits and cherishes the chance to tell these tales.

What local reader wouldn't love Mr. Snover?

I had heard that Mr. Snover was an outstanding athlete in his own right, a diminutive, sparkplug guard on Handy and City League basketball teams. I saw that quality spring to life in his youngest son, as Dan "Snoopy" Snover made plays on the ballfield that other kids could not make, and did things on the basketball court that gave all of us little guys a little inspiration.

Mr. Snover was fiercely proud of all of his kids -- Mark, David, Dan and Tricia - but his bond with Dan played out for all to see. Then-sports editor Corky Meinecke even wrote a story about the connection of Smokey and Snoopy and what it meant to our sports community.

It's fair to say that I wanted to be like Mr. Snover. And that's part of the reason I pursued a career in sports writing - and made it my mission to be a sports writer for The Bay City Times.

The day I was hired at The Times in 1996 and joined the staff of Jim DeLand, Bruce Gunther, Mike Spencer, Jim Herek and Tom Marter - and Clarence Snover - remains a highlight of my life.

About a month into my tenure in the Fifth and Adams newsroom, my mentor pulled me aside and pointed at each journalist hard at work. "Who is that? And that? And that?...." he would quiz.

"That's Dick, and Wes, and Tom, and Kelly..." I responded.

"And who am I?" he said.

"Mr. Snover."

He explained to me that I could call him Smokey or Snuffy or Clarence, but he could no longer be Mr. Snover to me. And over the approximately nine months that we were coworkers - before his retirement - we treated each other like colleagues. We joked around with all the other sports-writing clowns, throwing and taking jabs at every opportunity.

When an irate caller complained about her paper being tossed in the bushes by the paper boy, he said "We have someone working on that very issue right now." And transferred her to Jim Herek.
What coworker wouldn't love Mr. Sno... Smokey Snover?

Here I am now, 20 years into my job at The Times. To this day, whenever I travel to the Thumb or north along the Lake Huron shore, somebody is sure to ask me about Clarence Snover. Everybody knew him, everybody liked him.

The way he treated me as a kid, taking the time to make me feel special, was just his mode of operation.

And though he and wife Pat spent their retirement years living in Spokane, Washington, he remained a Bay City icon. Whenever he returned to town, he would be stopped by well-wishers everywhere he'd go - people he'd written about, people he'd played against, people who read his every word, people he had touched with his delightful friendliness.

I like to think about how many people have scrapbooks buried away somewhere, filled with clippings of glory days gone by. Think of all the stories that were clipped and kept that started with the words "By Clarence Snover, Times Writer."

He told the stories of our sports community, and did it with passion and pride. Along the way, he became a friend to all, and a mentor this sports writer will never forget.

Oliver Franklin Wilson was born on 21 April 1913 in Butler, Butler, Pennsylvania.^1,2 He and Iris Catherine Richardson were married on 20 August 1936.¹ He died on 2 August 1978, at age 65, in Bethel Park, Allegheny, Pennsylvania.^1,2 He was buried in Jefferson Memorial Park, Pleasant Hills, Allegheny, Pennsylvania.²

Oliver Franklin Wilson was a Coke Works Operator.³

Ernst was born on 12 June 1907 in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.¹ He died on 12 June 1907, at age 0, in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.¹

Clare Edmund Ernst, Jr., was born on 3 September 1908 in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.^1,3,2 He died in February 1968, at age 59, in Alger, Ogemaw, Michigan.^1,3

Ernst was born on 24 October 1910 in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.¹ She died before 1920.

Raymond P. Lewis was born about 1901 in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.^1,2 He and Marjorie M. Snover were married on 19 June 1922 in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.^1,2 He died after 9 April 1940.

Raymond P. Lewis was an Office Equipment Salesman.^1,3

Mabel Mildred Fifield was born on 2 April 1913 in Decker, Sanilac, Michigan.^1,2,3 She and Ferris Hughes Snover were married on 28 May 1932 in Oakland County, Michigan.¹ She died on 6 December 2010, at age 97, in Houghton, Houghton, Michigan.^2,3 She was buried in Cremated- Oskar Cemetery, Houghton County, Michigan.^4,3

Mabel Mildred Fifield was a Grocery Store Teller.⁴ Mabel M. Snover
December 8, 2010
The Daily Mining Gazette
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HOUGHTON - Mabel M. Snover, 97, formerly of Houghton, died Monday, December 6, 2010, at Our Lady of Mercy Convalescent Home in Hubbell.

She was born in Decker, Mich. on April 2, 1913, a daughter of the late Arthur and Emily (Vandervort) Fifield and graduated from the Decker High School.

She was married to Ferris Snover and he preceded her in death in 1973.

Prior to retirement, Mabel worked as a teller at the A&P and Combers grocery stores in the Flint area.

Mabel loved her family dearly. She enjoyed crocheting, gardening and birds.

Surviving are three daughters, Patricia Barton of Houghton, Sandra (Bill) Bellairs of Harrison, Mich. and Cheryl Bibbs of Pewabic Location; numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren; one sister, Ella Saigeon Wright of Kentucky; numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

Besides her parents and husband, Mabel was also preceded in death by a son-in-law, Gary Barton; and 12 brothers and sisters.

As requested, cremation has taken place. There will be no public visitation or services. Interment will be in the Oskar Cemetery.

Arrangements are being handled by Antila Funeral Service, Inc., Jukuri-Antila Funeral Home, 1500 W. Quincy Street, Hancock, MI 49930. 906-482-3710.

Online condolences may be expressed to the family at antilafuneral.com.

Alice L. Wolverton was born on 27 December 1904 in Michigan.¹ She died on 12 January 1910, at age 5, in Williams Township, Bay, Michigan.¹

Henry E. Wolverton was born on 12 January 1907 in Bay City, Bay, Michigan.¹ He died on 2 January 1910, at age 2, in Williams Township, Bay, Michigan.¹