Chris Becker

There are some people whose presence in the world feels like sunlight—steady, warm, and quietly life-giving. They don't need grand gestures or loud declarations to make an impact because their kindness, humor, and way of loving others speak for them. Chris Becker was one of those rare souls.

Her life was never measured by accolades or titles, but by laughter around the kitchen table, the gentle way she cared for those who needed her most, and the unconditional love she poured into her family, her friends, and even her pets. Hers was a life defined by joy, generosity, and connection—a life lived with an open heart.

Chris and the Stickan family lived in Springfield, Illinois; Coldwater, Michigan; and Portage, Michigan. Her father, a civil engineer, and her mother, who devoted herself to raising six children, modeled humility, hard work, and caring for others. Her mother, Sally Stickan, later found a great deal of satisfaction working in the residence life and housing department at Western Michigan University and, in fact, helped secure Kelly’s dorm roomas a freshman in the fall of 1996. Chris absorbed those values deeply. They became the foundation of the quiet integrity, steadfastness, and compassion that guided her throughout her life. She believed in earning your way, saving for what mattered, and treating every person with dignity.

At just fifteen years old, while attendingPortage Northern High School, Chris met the boy who would become the love of her life. Kurt Becker—charmer, jokester, and hopeless romantic—decided the best way to impress her was by riding his unicycle past her house. It wasn't even on his route, but for Kurt, winning Chris's heart was worth every extra pedal. Their love story began with that fearless teenage devotion and never lost its spark. They married on August 7, 1976, at beautiful Crane Park in Kalamazoo. From that day forward, they were inseparable—best friends, partners, and joyful co-conspirators in a life they built together.

Chris radiated happiness. When something delighted her, she didn't hide it. She did her signature toe-tap happy dance—a little burst of joy that instantly let everyone around her know she was thrilled. She loved cozy days in her pajamas, Halloween costumes, music, games, and filling her home with the people she loved.

For decades she could be found at the kitchen table applying her makeup before work, kissing her grandbabies on the way out the door, sitting outside to wave the kids off to school, or waiting in the early morning hours to make sure Obelio made it home safely from work. She made unforgettable comfort food, especially her famous chili, a favorite of her daughter Kelly, her niece Rach Becker, and her granddaughter Emily Christine, who proudly carries her grandmother's name.

Her siblings were among the greatest joys of her life. Alongside their cousins, the Stickan children experienced everything the 1970s had to offer—music, laughter, mischief, and memories that lasted a lifetime. Her oldest sister, Lana, was larger than life in Chris's eyes, a cheerleader with what seemed like a movie-worthy romance with Sonny. Doug was her protector and confidant. She proudly pushed little Laurie through the neighborhood in a stroller, pretending she was her own baby. Her younger brother Mike remained someone she fiercely protected throughout her life while keeping her laughing until the very end. Brenda, her Irish twin, was one of Chris's closest companions for life.

During her final days at home with hospice care, when fear crept in, Chris would ask for "the girls." She meant Lana, Brenda, and her beloved niece Jessica Emmons. Their presence brought her comfort when she needed it most.

Joan “Joanie” LaFreniere came into Chris’s life over 53 years ago. Married to Kurt’s brother, Phil Becker, the two were fast friends, taking on adulthood, motherhood, and life as women in this sometimes cruel world. The two of them were peas in a pod, with a natural, loving, unspoken understanding of one another. After decades of kitchen table games, laughter, tears, and times on Beaver Island, Chris always knew she could count on Joan to show up for her and put her at ease, make her feel seen, and breathe life back into her spirit.

In 1977, Chris's world expanded with the birth of her daughter, Kelly. Their little house on Rivington became the center of their universe. Ten years later they moved to Mattawan, where their rural home—with dirt roads, a party-line telephone, and a backyard pool—became a gathering place for family and friends. Chris adored floating in the pool, affectionately calling it her time to "float and bloat," perfectly content with sunshine and the people she loved nearby.

Long before streaming existed, she amassed hundreds of movies through Columbia House. When life became difficult, she always returned to her favorites: Anne of Green Gables ("Anne Girl"), Little House on the Prairie, The Waltons, and Leave It to Beaver. Chris and Kurt created the kind of home people never wanted to leave because they always felt better after spending time there.

Chris spent more than twenty years as a machine operator at Plastics Engineering Corporation, later Titan Plastics. There she met Obelio Gomez Vail, who would become cherished family. After Kurt's passing, Obelio moved into the lower level of her home, helping care for the property she loved so much. When Ruth came into his life, Chris welcomed her wholeheartedly. Together they built a beautiful family, and Chris embraced the role of Grandma with boundless love. Her heart always seemed to find room for one more person who needed family.

Later, Chris found her true calling as a patient care assistant at Borgess Hospital, now Beacon Kalamazoo. She especially loved caring for older adults. She never rushed them or viewed them as another task. Instead, she saw each person as deserving of patience, dignity, and gentleness. Her warm smile and expressive almond-shaped eyes conveyed the compassion she carried so naturally.

Throughout their life together, Kurt traveled throughout the Midwest as an offset printing press mechanic. Together they built a life rich not in possessions but in laughter. Their home became a haven where friends, neighbors, cousins, siblings, and relatives gathered to share meals, music, stories, and friendship. They delighted in taking their nephew Mark Morrell for drives on Beaver Island or to racego-karts at Formula K. They loved having their nieces Melissa (Morrell) Kell, Rach Becker, and Jessica (Newhouse) Emmons, and their nephews Eric Newhouse and Tom Magoon, stay with them and enjoy the pool each summer. Chris and Kurt had an extraordinary gift for making people feel welcome, accepted, and loved. Even former boyfriends and former partners remained lifelong friends of the family because that was simply the kind of people Chris and Kurt were. After losing Kurt, Chris remained deeply connected to his siblings, their children and their children’s spouses, as well as all of the nieces and nephews she and Kurt had so dearly loved together.

Their nephew Ian Becker lived with them during his senior year of high school and remained deeply connected to them throughout the years. Chris saw the good in people. She was open-minded, accepting, and compassionate long before those qualities were widely celebrated. She welcomed others exactly as they were and quietly stood beside those who needed someone in their corner.

Years after losing Kurt, Chris was reunited with Pat Wouters, her middle-school sweetheart and an exchange student from Belgium. What began as a simple inquiry to her father blossomed into a storybook romance spanning more than a decade, with countless trips between Europe and the United States. Pat became "Grandpa Pat" to the children in Mattawan, and together he and Chris filled those years with adventure, laughter, and love.

As Chris's health declined, Kelly reassured her that the people she loved would continue caring for one another—that it was okay to rest, okay to let go. But letting go was difficult because Chris loved fiercely.

Kelly will forever miss the laughter, the joy that lit up her mother's face, and the simple comfort of lying beside her watching Anne of Green Gables, resting her head on her mom's chest, rubbing her belly, scratching her head, or giving the foot rubs Chris loved so much. Just as she had done for Kelly as a child, Chris happily paid the grandkids for foot rubs too.

She adored those grandchildren. She waved to them every morning from the porch, spoiled them with treats and gifts, and loved them without reservation. She welcomed Mike's children with that same unconditional acceptance, meeting each of them exactly where they were and loving them for who they already were.

Chris even had her own language—words like "sqwak" and "squally moo"—and delighted her pets with silly songs made up on the spot. She was a jokester, a comfort to the lonely, a safe place for the hurting, and a source of joy for everyone fortunate enough to know her.

Chris Becker lived a life overflowing with laughter, kindness, acceptance, and love. She leaves behind a legacy of joy, a family forever shaped by her example, and countless lives made better simply because she was part of them. Her light was gentle but unmistakable. Though the world feels quieter without her, the echoes of her laughter, her signature toe-tap happy dance, and her unwavering love will continue to live on in all who knew her.

Her story is not one of an ending, but of a life that continues through the people she loved and the love they now carry forward.

Christine "Chris" Becker, age 69, of Kalamazoo, passed away on July 20, 2026. She was born on May 5, 1957, in Coldwater, Michigan, to Emery and Sally (Filkins) Stickan.

She was preceded in death by her infant brother, Thomas Stickan; her brother, Doug Stickan; her sister, Laurie Stickan; her beloved husband, Kurt Alan Becker; and her mother, Sally Stickan.

She is survived by her daughter, Kelly Becker, and Kelly's husband, Mike Hess, along with Mike's three children. Also surviving are Obelio Gomez Vail, who was cherished and loved as a son; his wife, Ruth; and their children, whom Chris loved as her own grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister-in-law and best friend of 53 years, Joan LaFreniere; her father, Emery J. Stickan; her sisters, Lana Morrell and Brenda Garnett; her brother, Mike Stickan; and many beloved nieces and nephews, each of whom held a treasured place in the hearts of Chris and Kurt.

Please join us for a Life Story Reception on Saturday August 15 at Betzler Life Story Funeral Homes, 6080 Stadium Drive, Kalamazoo (269) 375-2900 where food, drinks, and stories can be shared.

Celebrate Chris’ life online by sharing your favorite stories and photos on her dedicated webpage at BetzlerLifeStory.com. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society or Centrica Hospice.