Age 92, passed away in Ridgewood, New Jersey. She was born in Rudyard, Michigan on May 7, 1916 to Finnish immigrant parents from Kuortane, Finland. She attended Cleary Business College in Ypsilanti, MI, and moved to Detroit in the late '30s. Irene enjoyed a lifelong interest in Finnish culture and language, and she was devoted to her large extended family.

Irene met her future husband, Norman Koponen, as choir members at St. John's Lutheran Church in Detroit (later Redford, Michigan), where they continued to sing together for 60 years. She retired from the Michigan Automobile Insurance Placement Facility in Livonia, and enjoyed traveling and gardening at her home in Livonia.

She was predeceased by her husband (1998), and is survived by her son Glenn (Marcia); daughter Janet Koponen-Hsu (Victor); grandchildren Michael, Jennifer Cole, and Brian; and twenty nieces and nephews.

The funeral service will be held on Monday, December 29, at 11:00AM (viewing at 10:00AM) at St. John's Lutheran Church, 13542 Mercedes, Redford, Michigan. The burial will take place at Glen Eden Cemetery in Livonia, followed by a luncheon at the nearby Finnish Center on 8 Mile Rd.

Arrangements by Potti Funeral Directors.