Mary Eileen Horne

 Eileen Life Sketch

Eileen’s life began in an old farmhouse on Kirby road in Battle Creek, Michigan. 

Eileen’s Father, who served in Okinawa in WWII came home from the war and said to her mother that he and the other soldiers had been talking. They felt like they had missed the younger years of their children and he decided that they should have another baby when he got back home. So when Mary Eileen Moon was born on January 7, 1947 in Battle Creek, MI she was referred to as the “post war edition”. This was long before the term “boomer” was used. Her older sister, Kathy, and older brother, Bud, were the pre-war editions.

She was a happy little girl. Her home was filled with music. Her dad played piano and trombone and her mom played cello. Throughout Eileen’s life, she learned to play many different instruments. All in all, she played piano, cello, organ, viola, flute, trombone and French horn, playing some instruments better than others. In all the places that she lived, she would always find a local orchestra to join and would always be at the organ in church.

Eileen’s father had contracted encephalitis during the war and would no longer be able to practice as a dentist as a result. When Eileen was 8 years old, her father had a flare-up of the encephalitis and was killed after his car struck a tree on his way home. After this, Eileen remembers being anxious if her mother was ever late to pick her up from school. Her mother married again about 2 years later to Allen Lawson, who supported and loved their family and put all three kids through college.

Eileen attended school at Battle Creek Academy for all 12 years. She took piano and cello lessons and made many lifelong friendships.

Following her academy graduation, she attended Andrews University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts with a Physical Education major and a music minor.

After college, Eileen followed her older brother, Bud, to the PE department at Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska. Here, she taught college PE classes and took masters classes. She eventually completed a Master of Physical Education from the University of Nebraska. One of the PE classes she taught at Union was archery. She decided the class should be taught first thing in the morning so there were less people around which could be accidentally hit by wayward arrows.

At the time, Union College had what was called Action Teams. These were groups of students that would go to surrounding churches and provide the music and sermon for the service. These Action Teams needed a faculty sponsor, so a theology student named Frank asked Eileen to be the sponsor for his group. Frank was an older student having been in the Marines during the Vietnam War. After a first date to Sears to pick up some tires and then to the favoured Valentino’s pizza, the news was spread that Frank and Eileen were an item. 

Their first date was a bit before Christmas and they did what a couple isn’t supposed to do: a short courtship and a long engagement. They were married, 50 years ago, in September 1974 in the old church in Lincoln, Nebraska.

That fall, they moved to Berrien Springs so that Frank could attend seminary. Eileen worked in the PE department during his two years of Seminary. She taught badminton, swimming, fitness and theory classes for PE majors.

After Frank’s graduation from seminary, they pastored three churches in the Texas panhandle. During these years, Eileen learned to play the flute and worked at a Sunday school nursery.

In 1980 Frank and Eileen returned to Berrien where they pastored the Chikaming and Stevensville churches. It was here that they welcomed their first child, Stephen, into the world and two and a half years later, Sarah entered the family.

The next move was to Owosso, MI in 1985. Eileen stayed at home with her children. As a mother, she was always patient and calm. If the kids wanted advice, they would go to dad. If they wanted a listening ear, they would go to mom. Eileen had a wealth of knowledge and taught her children about nature, gardening, arts & crafts, and, most importantly, taught them to love Jesus. 

The family next went to Cadillac, MI. Here, Eileen volunteered at the school teaching PE and at the Community Service. She also helped with the local Pathfinder clubs.

Eileen’s love of birding started when she was about 14 years old when brother-in-law Dan Ekkens made a kitchen bird feeder and a purple Martin house for the Kirby Road house. She introduced birding to Frank when they married and the two of them enjoyed the hobby together. When one is a birder, it pervades every moment of ones’ life. Therefore every vacation became a birding trip and every rare bird sighting was a thrill.

When it was time for Steve and Sarah to start Academy, the family moved yet again to pastor near Great Lakes Adventist Academy. Eileen started work as a supervisor at the school cafeteria, and of course, joined the academy orchestra, playing cello or viola, whichever was needed.

Eileen moved back to Berrien Springs for the fourth time after Frank started working for Your Story Hour. She disliked all the moving, finding it hard to leave old friends and make new ones. Eileen started working in the food service at the local nursing home and then at the Niles hospital cafeteria until her retirement.

Frank passed away in 2006 after a couple of years with pulmonary fibrosis and a failed lung transplant. Eileen bravely carried on with her life; working and traveling to see her children.

Her cancer diagnosis came in 2008. She went through treatment and was in remission until 2020 when the cancer spread to many other parts of her body. She went through another round of treatment and the Lord blessed her with great quality of life for an extra 4 years. 

The granddaughters started coming in 2010 with the birth of Ava, followed by Jasmine, Camille and Savannah. Steve’s two daughters, Emma and Sadie made a total of 6 grand girls! Eileen cherished each moment spent with her granddaughters. 

Her love of nature and music lives on in each of them. She taught piano to 3 of her granddaughters thru video-call lessons for many years. Her last bit of advice to Ava was to, “keep up with your piano and start playing for church!.” 

In recent years, she has enjoyed traveling with her family to Nova Scotia, Hawaii, Mexico, Costa Rica and driven through much of British Columbia. Her last trip was a birding trip to Point Pelee National Park in Ontario, where the family had gone every spring to birdwatch when the kids were young.

Eileen’s favorite verse, that she felt described her life, is found in Mark 14:8. “She hath done what she could.” 

Eileen passed away peacefully the morning of September 16, 2024 with family by her side. In her last days, she was looking forward to heaven and praying for each family member, that they will be there with her. Her friends and family also look forward to that day when Jesus wakes Eileen up with a new body and He calls us all home to be together with Him forever. 

A memorial service will be held at the Eau Claire Seventh-day Adventist church on Saturday October 12 at 4:00 PM.  Arrangements have been entrusted to Allred Funeral Home in Berrien Springs, Michigan.