Reuben Hayes

Reuben Hayes, age 83, of Marshall passed away Friday morning, May 29, 2015 at his home.Mr. Hayes was born on April 8, 1932 in Hippo, Kentucky to Pewatt and Mollie (Howard) Watt. He was raised in Kentucky in the Appalachian Mountains and moved to the Marshall area as a young man. He completed his high school education attending Marshall High School. Reuben had been employed by the Kellogg Company in Battle Creek for over twenty five years. Other employment included the Oliver Aviation and then Crowell Carton in Battle Creek. Reuben served in the United States Air Force.While working at Oliver, he met Barbara Jean Lapham. It wasn't long before a romance blossomed and on January 16, 1954, the couple was married in LaGrange, Indiana. They had just celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary in January.Reuben was a very active member of the Marshall Wesleyan Church and served on the original building committee that built the church at its current location. He enjoyed traveling and took many family camping trips across the United States. He enjoyed collecting guns, pocket knives and coins.Reuben loved cars. He was a member of the Decent Car Gang and enjoyed going to car shows, often attending the car shows in Hershey, PA and Auburn, Indiana. He was very proud of his brown 1972 Buick Riviera and could often be seen driving it all around town.Reuben enjoyed sports and had been active in the Marshall Moose horseshoe league. He also enjoyed playing golf, bowling and softball in the Marshall leagues.He is survived by his wife, Barbara; daughters, Belinda Cygan of Kalamazoo and Cheryl Swafford of Marshall; a son, Reuben (Nicole) Hayes of Marshall; grandchildren, Steven, Amber, Timothy, Lee, Garred (Nichole), Audrey, Brenna, Rayna and Alayna; great grandchildren, Carson and Noah. He is also survived by a brother, Henry (Pat) Hayes of Marshall; and a sister, Martha Suiter of Ohio.He was preceded in death by a son-in-law, Matthew Cygan; and two brothers, Johnnie Hayes and Sylvester Hayes; and a infant sister, Betty Jo Hayes.The family will receive friends on Tuesday from 6 PM to 8 PM at the Craig K. Kempf Family Funeral Homes, Marshall Chapel. A funeral service to celebrate the gift of his life will be held 10:30 AM Wednesday, June 3, 2015 at the funeral home with Reverend Zack Langford officiating. Interment will follow in Oakridge Cemetery.Friends who wish may make memorial contributions to the Wounded Warrior Project or to the Marshall Wesleyan Church. Assistance with memorials is available at the funeral home.To leave a personal message and sign the online guest book, please visit www.kempffuneralhome.com...