Dr. Sara Culver
MARQUETTE, MI-The family of Dr. Sara Elizabeth Culver sadly announce the unexpected passing of their beloved mother and grandmother. Sara shall be remembered as a loving mother, a consummate scholar, and a passionate advocate for civil rights and environmental justice.
Sara was born in Lansing, Michigan, the only child of Melvina Culver (Kellogg) and Frank Culver. She loved to paint, sail, ride horses, and was proud of being first chair in her high school marching band drum core. She attended both the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, where she received her doctorate of philosophy. She taught women’s studies, composition, and mythology among other courses at Michigan State University and Grand Valley University. Later in life she married her longtime partner, Anthony Parise, who was also a professor at Grand Valley State University.
She was extremely proud of her three grandchildren, and committed herself to helping with any task, large or small, for her family; whether it was proofreading school papers, making brownies for a building crew, taking care of extra pets or chopping vegetables in her daughter’s restaurant. A voracious reader, she regularly consumed many literary periodicals, kept up on current events and was always drafting a letter to the editor. Sara was devoted to her cats, and was never without one until the end: in her words: ‘Somehow, the cat completes me: is it the humility I feel before a being so serene and complete in herself? She rouses almost simultaneously admiration and compassion – the pathos of such a tiny, frail, fearless creature against the great world.’
Fassbender Swanson Hansen Funeral and Cremation Services is assisting the family where memories may be shared at fassbenderswansonhansen.com