Marsha Lee Packer

Marsha Lee Packer (Ziegler) no longer suffers in her ALS ravaged body as she passed from this life on December 26, 2025. She leaves behind her best friend, adventure partner and husband of 50+ years, Jerry Packer, her sisters, Mary Ziegler of Ionia, Jan Schell of Chesaning, and Joanna Hodges of Hudsonville, her stepdaughter Shellie (Ken) Himbaugh, three granddaughters and 6 great grandchildren. Marsha was born in 1953 to Carl Frederick and Dolores (Benedict) Ziegler in Cadillac, MI. She was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Cindy and stepson David. Marsha and Jerry began their adventures in Boon Michigan in 1975 and lived in Grand Rapids, MI where she was a nurse’s aid at Butterworth, worked in accident reconstruction and later was Assistant to the Comptroller at the newly opened Amway Grand Plaza Hotel. In the 80’s they were tired of winter and moved to Florida, got a sailboat, she became a licensed captain and explored the Caribbean for 20 years. When they returned stateside, they moved to Missouri, and she worked at Fort Leonard Wood and later for Ronda Cortisini and Jeff Thomas as a paralegal. When her health declined, she came home to Michigan to be cared for by her sisters. She loved to go “out and about” in her bright pink power chair and lived life as full as she could right until the end. Thank you to all her caregivers (especially Kat from Comfort Keepers), medical team, friends, family and the Susan Mast ALS Foundation who helped make this possible.

A celebration of her life will be scheduled in the spring when she is interred at Mt. Carmel Cemetery in Cadillac, Michigan.