Onolee M. "Lee" Tuller

Onolee Tuller was a remarkable lady who lived an exceptional life. She was a beautiful lady in both body and spirit. Onolee was a devoted and loving daughter, sister, wife, mother and grandmother. Most of all Onolee was a woman who believed in her self and loved and appreciated every moment of her life. Onolee never gave into pain or illness and did not go quietly into the good night. Onolee Mae Clark was born in Willing, New York, September 30, 1924. She was the fourth child born to Della Graves Clark and Carmi Clark. On the birth of their sixth child the Clarks purchased two farms in Westfield, Pennsylvania where Onolee, the consummate tomboy grew up. Living on a farm during the height of the depression seemed like the good life to mom. There was always enough food for all, and Onolee loved running barefoot on hot summer days. This was a blessing for her parents as they could not afford to keep eight children in shoes. Onolee's father always admired mom's spirit and determination, although sometimes it tested his patience. When Onolee was about nine years old she discovered trees. Trees were such great fun to climb and if you climbed high enough you could avoid people you didn't want to see and sometimes chores you didn't want to do. A problem arose when her mother discovered Onolee rather high up in the tree and became worried that she might fall. Grandfather was asked to remove some of the lower limbs so that Onolee could no longer climb the tree. Her father reluctantly removed all the lower branches from the tree. A few days later grandfather once again found Onolee even higher in the tree. His patience now waning, he wanted to know just how she had gotten up the tree. Onolee smiled down at him and pointed to the second level bedroom window where one of the branches bowed itself nicely just below her windowsill. A break from the daily chores of farm life happened for mom and her siblings when they went to visit their Grandfather William Clark. He lived in a small home connected to his general store in Shongo, NY When visiting the children were often asked to help grandfather haul merchandise to the second floor. At the end of the day, the children were always delighted when their grandfather rewarded them with a piece of candy. How times have changed. Onolee was raised with an incredible work ethic, as well as a wide variety of talents. She learned to knit and sew beautifully. In later years, she made her husband's suits, Halloween outfits for her girls, and even their wedding gowns! She also loved to cook and bake and after marriage took cake decorating classes, helping her create marvelous cakes for her girls on their birthdays. But this was only a small part of Onolee's talents. She was a self taught baton twirler and drum major at Westfield High School and alternating drum major for the Knoxville Band. Under her father's tutelage, Onolee not only learned to drive the tractor but to fix that tractor when it broke down. The Tuller girls grew up with a mom who changed the oil on the car and when their father needed help rebuilding a carburetor, their mom could put it back together faster than their father could. When Onolee was 14 she met a very intelligent young man named William Tuller, who was 4 years her senior. William fell in love with Onolee, especially her spirit, although her obstinance often got him in trouble. They married two years later on March 9, 1941 when Onolee was only 16. Although Onolee's mother and father loved Bill they did try to dissuade her from such a youthful marriage. There was no deterring Onolee. But true to Onolee's good judgment of people and human nature, this proved to be a long and happy marriage of over fifty years. As we have mentioned Onolee's stubbornness often got Bill in trouble and when she was seven months pregnant she insisted on helping Bill fix their car. Her father stopped by to say hello, and began talking to Bill, who was standing by the car. He asked where Onolee was, and she yelled out from under the car! Her father demanded she get out from under the car immediately and Onolee replied that she just needed a few more minutes and the damn thing would be fixed! In 1952, Bill's job took them from Elmira, NY to Muskegon, Michigan. Onolee had a difficult time adjusting to life in the Midwest as she missed her family enormously. Onolee decided to look for a job to keep her busy. She worked at Johnson products for 31 years, in addition to raising two daughters and acting as part-time secretary for Bill, not to mention serving as maid, cook, homework helper, counselor and all-around caregiver. Onolee also helped Bill start a ceramic business, learning to pour molds and teach ceramic classes. Eventually she learned to pour and paint antique dolls and teach doll making. Not surprisingly, Onolee was a very competitive person, and loved playing cards, baseball and was an exceptional bowler. She nearly bowled a perfect 300 game once, and much to Bill's chagrin, Onolee often bowled better than Bill. Most of all, Onolee was a wonderful wife, mother and grandmother, who dearly loved her family and life. She was very proud of her two grandchildren, Eric and Tammey. Onolee had an especially close relationship with her granddaughter, who was like a third daughter to her. Onolee and Tam shared passions for baseball, music, game shows and treasure hunting at the local yard sales. Sadly, Onolee died Thursday morning, December 28, 2006 at the age of 82. Onolee was a tenacious woman of strong resolve. She loved to laugh and make others laugh too. She was a devoted wife and mother, who believed that all things were possible and taught us to believe that also. She will be greatly missed. Onolee is preceded in death by her husband William; her brothers: Elmer and Donald Clark and a sister: Thelma Rumsey. She is survived by her children: Linda (James) Bickmeyer of Muskegon, Mi and her daughter Joanne (Robert) Morrison of Winston-Salem, NC; grand-children, Tammey (Forrest) Brown of Grand Haven, MI and Eric Robert (Ashly) Morrison of Greensboro, NC; and three siblings, Victoria Harper, Daniel (Karen) Clark and David (JoAnn) Clark, all of Knoxville, Pennsylvania. A memorial gathering is Wednesday, January 3, 2006, 12:30 PM at Clock Life Story Funeral Home-Muskegon with Rev. Nana Kratochvil officiating. Interment at Sunrise Memorial Gardens. Memorial donations may be made to Hackley VNS Hospice, 888 Terrace Street, Muskegon, MI 49440 or to the Mission for Area People, 2500 W. Hume Avenue, Muskegon, MI 49444.