Irene I. Battle

SUTTONS BAY- Irene Isidra Battle, 97, passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, June 19, 2025. It’s appropriate that she passed at the Summer Solstice with the longest day of the year because she provided a bright and long-lasting light in our lives. Irene was born January 28,1928 in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of Domingo and Matilda Damasco. She grew up in a strict Catholic family with her father who was in the US Navy, her mother, and brother and sister. When Irene was five years old, the family moved from their Brooklyn tenement building and sailed on a ship for a month, through the Panama Canal, and moved to her father’s homeland in the Philippines. After three years, the family moved back to New York in 1936. That experience left many good memories. Irene continued in school and was liked by her teachers, some of which she kept in contact with for over 50 years. It was during a hospital stay in the Philippines that Irene decided to become a nurse because she wanted to help people. She attended the Brooklyn Hospital School for Nurses and passed the state board exam as a registered nurse in 1949. As a woman of color entering the field in the 1940’s, she was a pioneer who broke barriers in military nursing. After working there for a year, she followed her father’s US Navy path and joined the Nurse Corps, first stationed in Long Island, and then transferred to Portsmouth Naval Hospital in Virginia. She joined the Navy not just to serve, but to see the world – travel being one of her great loves. Italy, in particular, remained a dream destination she often spoke about fondly. She met many lifelong friends there and met Jerry, her future husband, who was also in the Navy. Because “interracial” marriage was illegal in Virginia at the time, Irene and Jerry had to cross state lines for their wedding to be legal – a testament to their love and powerful act of courage and conviction. They married in 1953, and moved to Michigan, where Jerry was from, and lived in Bellaire, Traverse City, and then landed permanently in Suttons Bay in 1958. Throughout her life, Irene was a matriarch not only of her family but of every hospital where she worked. While Jerry served as Leelanau County’s Conservation Officer, Irene continued her nursing career at Munson Hospital, while raising a family of seven children in Suttons Bay. The family later moved to Lansing, Fenton, and Muskegon, in Michigan while maintaining a “home base” on Little Traverse Lake. During those years, Irene continued her nursing career at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, and a Grand Blanc doctors’ office, often working tireless hours caring for others before coming home to do the same for her family.

In 1985, Irene and Jerry started wintering on the North Carolina coast in Morehead City where Irene continued fulfilling her calling to care for people by helping nursing home residents with their spiritual needs. She met many close friends in the neighborhood and at St Egbert’s Catholic Church, while being a Eucharistic minister and serving on many parish committees, including cooking for the local mission. The warm months were spent in Suttons Bay, where she was always happiest preparing food for many family gatherings. Irene and Jerry moved back to Suttons Bay permanently in 2018. Even in her elder years, she was always a consummate hostess with delicious meals, a clean house, and clean sheets when her seven children, fifteen grandchildren, and thirteen great-grandchildren visited. She was competitive and had a knack for winning many rounds of the family’s favorite card game “Nasty”.

Irene and Jerry made two trips searching throughout Ireland for family ancestors. They also made a couple of trips through Italy and visited the Vatican, which realized one of Irene’s dreams. Jerry and Irene enjoyed almost 72 years of marriage.

During her entire life, Irene maintained a strong faith and served in many capacities at the Catholic parishes where she lived. St. Michael’s Church in Suttons Bay created a strong religious foundation for the family. Living next door to St. Michael’s School where the children went created a lifetime bond with the Dominican sisters there. Irene and Jerry did an annual trip to visit Irene’s sister, Eleanor (Sr Mary Dolores, O. Cist) at Valley of Our Lady Monastery in Wisconsin. They maintained a close friendship up to her last days and shared their strong faith with the family. Irene cherished her beliefs in her Franciscan fraternity.

Irene was extremely proud of being a veteran and both she and her husband Jerry have bricks in the Veteran’s Plaza at the Government Center. Irene and Jerry were likely one of the oldest married veteran couples in Leelanau County.

MOTHER-MOM

Mother-Mom meant the world to her seven children. She didn’t have a long resume of extraordinary job titles or club memberships. But she made this world a better place for everyone that she came into contact with. She was the consummate mom and Died June 19, 2025

nurtured us and provided non-stop love and tough discipline when we went out of line. With seven children, she never missed a beat and sometimes had to work around the clock while balancing a job and running the household. Three or four delicious meals a day were on the table set for nine, her baked goods were desired and devoured, the dishes were washed and put away, the well-worn Maytag washer ran multiple daily loads and clothes folded, the house was clean, and she would be up all night with us when we were sick. And she went to work as a registered nurse to care for others between having babies. Even at 96 years old, when a caregiver didn’t show up, she instinctively went to the kitchen and did her best at putting together dinner while balancing one hand on her walker, and the other shaky hand reaching into a hot oven to pull out a hot meal. Her innate calling was to care for others and put everyone else before herself. When she wasn’t feeling well she always said she was fine and was more concerned about other family members issues. She put herself last and wanted nothing in return. She never wanted anyone to fuss over her and always went without if there wasn’t enough to go around. She never complained. She was ashamed of herself if she fell out of bed and needed assistance and she felt extremely guilty that her health in the last declining months resulted in affordability discussions about caregiving.

Mom, you subtly taught us about life lessons: - You showed us how to grocery shop on a tight budget. When it was a limit of one gallon of milk on sale you lined each of us behind you in the checkout line so we could each buy a gallon to meet our ration of eight gallons of milk a week. What a great Meijer memory!

- You sewed your own clothes from remnant fabric. It was always interesting that your dress fabric matched the curtains in the house. And you looked great in every color. Your daughters learned from you and your grand-daughters were envious of how great you always looked!

- You taught us that prayer and a strong faith in God would get us through many of life’s challenges.

- You taught us that sitting down together and saying grace before dinner strengthened our family bond. And asking if we could be excused from the table when done taught us manners and politeness.

- You taught us to know right from wrong. Wooden spoons helped drive the point home. That discipline helped us raise our own children.

- Your ever presence in the background of our lives provided a spiritual reckoning in everything that we did.

Oh, humble Mother, we thank you and love you for the never-ending love that you gave to us every day of our lives. You are an unsung hero. We thank God for your time with us and we know that He was watching your lifetime of service and know that He will reward you.

Even at 97.4 years old, you left us too soon. Irene is survived by her husband Jerry, sons Richard, David (Sally) , Carl ( Judie), and Eric (Lynda), and daughters Geralyn, Barbara, and Maria (Rob) Mackenzie, sister Eleanor Damasco (Sister Mary Dolores, O. Cist), grandchildren Rockell, Matthew (Morgan), Emily (Chris) Kauhn, Justin (Taylor), Lucas and Julie Kalush, Kevin, David James (Alyssa), Garrett, Eleanor (Brian), and Amy Wisenbaugh, Jennifer and Andrew Mackenzie, Ashley Eilers, and Derek (Leah), great grandchildren Hannah, Abigail, Jonathan, Lainey, Catherine, (baby boy on the way), Valarie, Liam, Owen, Madison, Alexa, Jase, Danielle, and Landon. She is also survived by special NC friends, Georgia and Buzz Pope.

She was preceded in death by her parents Domingo and Matilda Damasco, and brother Frank Damasco.

A celebration of Irene’s life will be held from 5pm-8pm on Friday, July 11th, with a rosary at 7pm at the Martinson Funeral Home in Suttons Bay. A funeral mass will be held at St. Michael’s Church in Suttons Bay at 11am, Saturday, July 12th. Graveside burial services with a Military Honor Guard will be held at St. Michael’s Cemetery at a later date to be determined.

Memorial donations may be directed in Irene’s memory to the Valley of Our Lady Monastery 7320 Urness Road Hollandale, Wisconsin 53544.

The family would like to thank the agencies and caregivers that cared for her during the final months: VA Home Health Care Team; many caregivers including Visiting Angels; Hospice of Michigan. Thanks also to St. Michael’s Catholic Church and Parish for the Last Sacraments and leading prayers.

Please share condolences and memories with the family at www.martinson.info Arrangements are with the Martinson Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Leelanau.