Joseph G. "Red" Casagranda

Joseph Gust “Red” Casagranda, age 92, of Caspian, Michigan, passed away peacefully Wednesday, November 30, 2016 at the Oscar G. Johnson Veterans Hospital in Iron Mountain. He was born June 30, 1924, in Iron River, Michigan to the late Gustave and Viola (Wilke) Casagranda. At 18, Joseph served during World War II under General Patton and was honorably discharged in April 1946. Joseph met and married Frances Ravnik on May 26, 1951. They celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary together this year. The couple were lifelong residents of the area. He was employed by Caspian Construction for 19 years and retired from the Empire Mine in 1986. He was a member of St. Cecilia’s Catholic Church of Caspian and the Legion Post 21 of Stambaugh. He enjoyed watching football and baseball, playing cribbage, hunting grouse and spending time with his family and friends. Joseph is survived by his loving wife of 65 years, Frances; four daughters, Beverly (Mark) Eggert of Milwaukee, WI, Mary (Fred) Stover of Iron River, MI, Rosie (Rick) Lehman of Howard, WI, Joannie (Jeff) Fredricks of Crystal Falls, MI; one son, Joseph “Rusty” (Cindy) Casagranda of Milwaukee, WI; grandchildren, Fred Stover of Marquette, MI, Amber (Kelly) Stover of Iron River, MI, Zachary Eggert of Milwaukee, WI, Christopher (Kelsey) Lehman of Green Bay, WI and Lindsey Lehman of Howard, MI; and one great granddaughter, Iris Lehman; one brother, Peter (Colleen) Casagranda of Beloit, WI; two sisters, Rosemarie Ferguson of Norway, MI and Chloe (Bill) Peterson of Simpsonville, SC. He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Daniel Casagranda, Carl Casagranda and Harold Reinke; sisters, Ruth “Andy” Pretto, Helen Foucault and Louise Smith.   Visitation will be held on Monday, December 5, 2016 from 9:00 to 10:45 a.m. at the Jacobs Funeral Home in Iron River. Funeral services will follow with Rev. George Maki to officiate. The West Side Veterans will accord Military Rites during the service. Interment will be in Stambaugh Cemetery, in the spring. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Joseph G. "Red" Casagranda, please visit our flower store.