Elaine F. (Stephens) Kuespert

Elaine Frances Kuespert, age 75 of Mishawaka, passed away at Memorial Hospital on December 18, 2020.  She was born August 4, 1945 in South Bend to the late James Sr. and Ruby (VanLue) Stephens.  She was a graduate of Adams High School,  class of 1963 and later attended IUSB.  On December 29, 1988, she married Dennis Kuespert in South Bend.

Dennis survives, along with their children Michele (Bruce) Kulp of Edwardsburg, Michigan, Jennifer (Jesse) Heavner of Mishawaka, Drew (Amber) Kuespert of Fremont, Indiana and Khara (Matthew) Brooks of Mishawaka.  Also surviving are her grandchildren Matthew Barna. Ellise Kuespert, Elijah, Abigael, Isobel, and Sam Brooks and Jordan, Jagger, Jaden and Joselynn Heavner.  Surviving as well is her brother James Stephens Jr. of South Bend, her special nephew Adam (Andrea) Stephens and her cat, “ALF.”  She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother Larry Stephens.

Visitation will be held from 10am-1pm Saturday, December 26, 2020 at Cruz Family Funeral Home in Osceola with Pastor Chris Rowe officiating the 1:00 pm funeral service.  Interment will follow in Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens, Osceola. Due to the current Covid 19 pandemic, those in attendance are asked to wear a mask and follow social distancing guidelines.  Services will be streamed in real time at the following link: http://us02web.zoom.us/j/5746748689 .  Admission into the virtual waiting room will begin 30 minutes prior to the start of the funeral service.

Elaine was employed by Juhl Advertising for a short time after high school and then began a career in cost accounting with RACO in South Bend.  She was employed with RACO  for over 25 years before retiring in the year 2000.

In her spare time, Elaine loved shopping at thrift stores for rare finds, collecting antiques and then selling them to other collectors through eBay.  She also collected buttons and belonged to a button club for many years.  She had fun playing slots at the casinos with her close family and friends.  She and Dennis enjoyed traveling together. They were blessed to spend 2 weeks in the Bahamas every year for 25 years and they had the opportunity to travel to England in 2019.  Elaine loved animals and was notorious for shouting “Hi!” to the cows in the fields.

In her memory, donations may be made to Ryan’s Place in Goshen.  To view her online video tribute, light a virtual candle in her memory, or to leave a message of condolence for the Kuespert family, please follow the link provided on the tribute wall tab above.