Willa Stauffer Death | Obituary – One of our original four founders of Northwood University Willa Stauffer Sadly passed away.
Dr. Willa Stauffer was born on July 27, 1928 in Peru, Illinois, one of eight children of Mr. and Mrs. Keith Kirkendall. She, like her late husband Dr. R. Gary Stauffer, were Northwood University Co-founders. Willa was dedicated to activities in support of Northwood since the college’s founding in 1959. She took on each job as a servant leader. With a kind smile and twinkling eyes, she was known to clean and paint facilities, sew numbers on student-athlete uniforms, and provide transportation for students. Since inception, if it was good for Northwood, Willa was there to help.
Willa was an active member of the National Women’s Board, Town & Campus and the Library League. She also served as chair of Town & Campus. She worked diligently on the FAD Auction projects and the annual Town & Campus Holiday Boutiques and served as a gracious hostess and ambassador on behalf of Northwood. She served the interests of health and community projects as a member of the Gratiot Community Hospital Auxiliary in Alma and was an active volunteer with MidMichigan Health. Willa served as a member of the Margaret Chase Smith Library Center Advisory Board, was an officer of the Midland County chapter of the American Red Cross and was Red Cross youth chairman.
Throughout her life, Willa was an active part of Northwood University and will be forever missed. When asked in 2009 if there was one thing that she hopes Northwood never loses sight of she wrote, “The hard work, the sacrifices that built Northwood, the value of relationships, that people make a difference, the free-enterprise philosophy, and never forget to prepare today’s students for the world they will work in and lead.”
We are eternally grateful for her passion for this institution and the legacy she helped create.
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