Karri Balcom

Karri Jo Balcom, 62, of Traverse City, Michigan, passed away peacefully on Thursday, September 11, 2025 after a valiant battle with cancer. Karri was born on July 1, 1963, in Kalamazoo, Michigan to parents Arthur Jr. and Joyce (Holland) Bergman of Gobles, Michigan.

She grew up there, graduating from Gobles Public Schools in 1981. She later attended Western Michigan University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration in 1985.

In 1989, she married Steve Balcom of Hesperia, Michigan, and they eventually moved to Traverse City to seek employment and start a family. They have two children: daughter, Grace and son, Joshua. Karri found employment as a controller/accountant with a few different companies in the Traverse City area; her longest tenure being at Old Mission Windows. She also held the position of financial secretary at the churches she attended, most recently with The Orchard Church of Kingsley, Michigan, where she and Steve have been long-time members.

Along with her enjoyment and expertise with numbers and finance, Karri also had a passion for cooking, and she loved sharing her talent for this with others. Her other loves included knitting, sewing, reading, and spending time outdoors with family and friends on the numerous trails in and around Traverse City. The thing that brought Karri the most joy was spending time playing and interacting with her two granddaughters.

Karri is survived by her husband of 36 years, Steve Balcom; their two children, Grace (Justin) Maluchnik of Fraser, MI and Joshua Balcom of Shelby Township, MI; two granddaughters, Paisley and Raegan; two sisters, Kelly (Todd) Kabel of Columbia, TN and Nikki Bergman of Grand Ledge, MI; brother, Daniel Bergman of Graying, MI; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her father, Arthur in 2005 and her mother, Joyce in 2025.

There will be a memorial service held on Saturday, September 27 at 1:00p.m. with a family visitation at 12:30 p.m. at The Orchard Church, located at 3903 Voice Road, Kingsley, MI 49649.

In lieu of flowers, if you are so moved, the family requests that memorials be contributed to the Cowell Family Cancer Center, 1106th St., Traverse City, MI 49684. Donations can also be made online at https://www.munsonhealthcare.org.

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