Louanne Kay (VerSluis) Collins

Louanne Kay Collins, 70 of Portage, passed away at Bronson Methodist Hospital on April 18, 2023, with her loving family by her side. She was born on June 26, 1952, to Lewis and Geraldine (VanderRoest) VerSluis in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Louanne earned a bachelor’s degree in teaching from Western Michigan University and taught Language Arts and Social Studies at Portage West and Portage Central Middle Schools from 1988 to when she retired in 2014, following her 26th year of teaching.  She was extremely passionate about her role as an educator and touched the lives of so many kids in those 26 years. In 2010 she earned the International Baccalaureate Educator of Distinction, an award which requires an educator to have been nominated by a student. She always made sure every one of her students felt loved, leaving a lasting impression on each and every one of them.

Louanne met her husband of 48 years, Bill Collins, in 1975 while working at Garrett Agency when he came in to get insurance paperwork. Six months later they were married and over the next several years they had three kids together whom she adored- Matthew, Mindy and Allison. Louanne spent her early years as a stay-at-home mom, before starting her teaching career once the kids had all started school.  She spent the rest of her life selflessly supporting them and making sure they, as well as eventually her grandchildren, were taken care of.  Just like all of her students, her family always felt loved.  Louanne had a very special relationship with her grandson, Cameron, and spent so much quality time with him while growing up—reading books to him, taking him to the Air Zoo, roller skating, trips to the Kalamazoo Museum and instilling her wisdom along every step of the way.

One of her favorite places on earth and where she spent every summer for the majority of her life, was her family’s cottage on Pine Lake.  Often times late at night, after everyone else was sleeping you could find her and her mom at the end of the dock, just quietly watching the moon and the lights of it cascading across the water.  She loved riding on the back of Bill’s motorcycle and feeling the wind on her face, just riding through the country for hours and hours.  Bill and Louanne were also blessed with a wonderful 3- week road trip out west in 2008, during which they stopped at multiple National Parks and other unique destinations (Joshua Tree, Sequoia, Capital Reef, Zion, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain National Park, Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, Bryce Canyon, Grand Staircase, Canyon Lands, Manti-La Sal National Forest and Arches National Park).  This was a dream trip for them both. She spent a great deal of her free time in her later years reading thousands of books, studying the bible and researching her illness.

For the last several years, Louanne has suffered from a rather severe form of Scleroderma (an autoimmune disease), which eventually led to the complications that caused her death. However, it would be wrong to say that she lost her battle with this disease because she never stopped fighting. No matter how sick she was, she was always determined and remained hopeful that each day would be better than the last. When anyone else would have broken, she stayed strong and through her we know what resilience and perseverance truly looks like. There was no quit in Louanne, and just because she is no longer here, it doesn’t mean she “lost” her fight.  She was comforted in knowing that she would be welcomed into Jesus’ arms and reunited with her parents and sisters upon her death, which was evident by the many journals and writings she left behind.

Louanne is survived by her beloved husband Bill Collins; children Matthew (Krissy) Collins, Mindy (Bryan) McFaul, and Allison (Jeremy) Collins; grandchildren Luca Collins and Cameron Collins; nieces Melissa Losh and Emma Roy; Nephews Ethan Roy and Emiliano Fraire; sister-in-law Rebecca (Mark) Fraire; and a very dear friend, Sue Schroder. Louanne was preceded in death by her parents and her sisters Patricia Roy and Cheryl Dick.

A funeral service for Louanne will be held on Saturday April 29, 2023, at Langeland Family Funeral Homes 411 East Centre Avenue, Portage, MI 49002. Visitation will be held from 10:00am to 11:00am, the funeral service will be at 11:00am, and a committal service will be held at Mt. Ever-Rest Memorial Park South immediately after.  Following the committal service, a social gathering will be held at Texas Corners Bible Church from 1:00-3:00pm to continue celebrating the life of Louanne. Please visit Louanne’s personalized webpage to leave memories at https://www.langelands.com