Lansing Thomas Carpenter Sr.

Lansing Thomas Carpenter Sr., aka “Lan the Carpet Man”, died at the age of 76 on September 13th, 2021, due to heart failure. He previously survived cancer & open-heart surgery, while bravely fighting to have more time with his family. He stayed active working on construction projects even in his last days. He was grateful for the extra time he had with his family thanks to University of Michigan’s Frankel Cardiovascular Center. Lan was Born October 2nd, 1944, to the late Lansing Homer Carpenter Jr. and Helen Evelyne (Wilson) Carpenter. As a baby, his first home was in a house in Port Huron that was built around a tree. As a young boy, he spent his summers in Toronto, Ontario, Canada visiting his grandmother, Viola Mae (Walters) Wilson, where he visited the Royal York Hotel and Canadian National Exhibition. He grew up in Marysville with his brother, Bill, where he had many adventures with his dogs and fox named Prince, riding his Cushman Eagle motor scooter & hunting with his friends, and working in the Marysville Bakery making donuts. He graduated from Marysville High School in 1963. Lan met his future wife, Nancy, when she was visiting her sister & brother-in-law in Michigan. He married Nancy Hynes on July 1st, 1972, in Deerfield Beach, Florida. They renewed their vows on their 30th anniversary in Sacramento, California. They were vaccinated for Covid-19 on their anniversary in 2021 and were enjoying their 50th year of marriage. “Some of my favorite memories with Lan are water skiing, traveling across the country, working the climbing wall together, and just spending time together talking or watching a movie, and our occasional dancing. Over half a century of living, loving, and making memories together (heart emoji) miss you so much.” Nancy Hynes Carpenter, wife Lan had many types of jobs where he enjoyed learning a wide variety of skills. As a young man he worked in factories, including Anchor Holt and Ford. However, for most of his life he explored numerous entrepreneurial endeavors. One of his favorite things about being an entrepreneur was meeting all kinds of different people and learning about their lives. His businesses included everything from selling cookware, to construction jobs (cutting down trees, installing flooring, painting, wallpaper, drywall, roofing, plumbing, siding, etc.), to owning a portable rock-climbing wall and printing custom t-shirts. He was not afraid to take a risk and try something new, but his passion was always flooring installation- his primary business for 50 years. He took pride in the quality of his workmanship and sometimes left a signature and/or picture hiding under the flooring he installed. It was important to Lan to help people who had difficult life circumstances, by teaching them a trade, and often giving them food, clothes, and even somewhere to live. He was proud of his many apprentices who improved their life circumstances and loved hearing their stories of success. Lan was always interested in learning new things, and enjoyed medical documentaries about surgery, and watching National Geographic and Discovery Channel shows about animals and travel. He thought axolotls were fascinating, and knew many random facts, like there are square trees in Panama and the Amazon River is the longest river in the world. He also liked watching movies, especially about aliens, magic, and ghosts. He was a great swimmer and enjoyed water skiing and SCUBA diving. He dreamed of finding pirate treasure in the Florida Keys. He was very good at math and figuring out how to build and fix things, including designing and building his own house. Some of his favorite foods were Prime Rib, Ice Cream, Fruit, and Broccoli Cheese Soup. Most of all he loved telling stories and spending time with his family. “The most important things the old boy taught me are how to be a good man, and how to say hello and goodbye (middle finger emoji)” Lansing Thomas Carpenter Jr., son “As long as I can remember you’ve been my biggest cheerleader. From tying my shoes to mentoring me with my career in flooring. I’m so proud of following in your footsteps with that. I’m grateful knowing there was nothing left unsaid between us. Thank you for all the incredible stories, support, love and memories. Love you always (heart emoji)” Erin Lynn Carpenter-Skuta, daughter “Our science experiments and adventures near and far instilled in me a love of learning and confidence to try new things. I’m grateful for the many opportunities you and mom created for me, and for being taught the value of perseverance and integrity.” Jamie Ann Carpenter, daughter Anyone who met Lan will remember his mischievous blue eyes, smile, and laugh. If you asked him how he was doing, he would always say “best day of my whole life” - the eternal optimist. He was very proud of his oldest grandchild, Lance, for his encouraging words, “Stay Strong! Never Give Up!” He wanted to “tip his hat” to Paul Mendelson for his support and friendship, especially during his “medical peregrination”. He was happy to be able to spend time with his extended family on September 11th, 2021 and was with his wife and youngest daughter while he passed away at home in Kimball Township, Michigan. He was preceded in death by his parents, Lansing Homer Carpenter Jr. and Helen Evelyne (Wilson) Carpenter. He is survived by and will be greatly missed by his wife Nancy Hynes Carpenter, and their daughter, Jamie Ann Carpenter; his ex-wife Gail Suzanne (Krafft) Gogas (& Jim), and their children, Erin Lynn Carpenter-Skuta (& Jerry) and Lansing Thomas Carpenter Jr. (& Brianne); his 8 grandchildren, Lansing Thomas Carpenter III, Dalton James Carlisle, Shayne Thomas Carpenter, Kylee Ann Skuta, Gabrielle Irene Coolidge, Kirra Elizabeth Fischer, Lily Marie Coolidge, and Michael Thomas Carpenter; his brother William James Carpenter (& Valerie); and his extended family, friends, and many other interesting people he met throughout his entrepreneurial endeavors and 50 year career installing flooring. In lieu of flowers, please share memories, stories, and pictures of Lan by sending an email to Carpenter.Lansing@gmail.com, and honor his final wishes by getting vaccinated and wearing a mask! We hope the information in this obituary helps genealogy researchers in the future, because Lan loved telling stories, especially about family history, and was interested in meeting new relatives that he found after his Ancestry.com DNA test. Our genealogy research found that Lansing was a given name in our family before Michigan’s state capital was established. One of Lan’s favorite family history stories to tell was about the tugboat named “Sport”, which was the first steel tugboat to sail on the Great Lakes. His grandfather, Lansing H. Carpenter Sr., was the Marine Engineer on the “Sport” tugboat. On the night of December 13th, 1920, the “Sport” was sailing on Lake Huron near Lexington, Michigan when there was a really bad storm that caused the tugboat to start taking on water fast. The person in charge of keeping the fire going in the boiler felt seasick and went to bed, so the fire went out and that meant they lost power so they couldn’t keep pumping water out of the tugboat. The crew tried to bail the water out by hand, but as the tugboat was sinking, they finally got in the lifeboat. They rowed for hours into the wind through rough water. When they finally made it to shore, they walked to someone’s house where they could warm up. Against the odds, they all survived! The “Sport” is the first shipwreck in Michigan with a historical marker. Arrangements in care of, Jowett Funeral Home, 1634 Lapeer Avenue, Port Huron. To view the obituary and share memories, please visit www.jowettfuneraldirectors.com

Lansing Thomas Carpenter Sr.

October 2, 1944 - September 13, 2021