Surnames: Baehr, Freimuth, Niemeyer, Gatzke, Peter, Hafeman, Tessmer, Kish,

----Source: Marshfield News Herald (Marshfield, Wood County, Wis.) Wed, Feb 16, 2005

Baehr, Mary (24 Dec. 1907 - 13 Feb. 2005)

DORCHESTER - Mary Baehr, 97, of Dorchester died Sunday, Feb. 13, 2005, at the Colonial Center in Colby, where she had resided since January 2002.

Funeral services for Mary will be at 11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 17, at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Dorchester with the Rev. Jerome Freimuth officiating. Burial will be in Dorchester Memorial Cemetery. Grandsons will serve as pallbearers along with her nephew, Richard Niemeyer.

Visitation with family and friends will be from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. today at Maurina Funeral Home in Dorchester.

Mary was born Dec. 24, 1907, in Gombin, Poland, to Wilhelm and Amalia (Gatzke) Peter. She came to America (through Ellis Island) with her parents at the age of 3. The family settled in South Dakota. They moved to Wisconsin in 1919 and lived on farms near Poniatowski, in the town of Stettin and the town of Frankfort.

Mary worked in a restaurant in Abbotsford in 1929, then moved to Dorchester in 1930 where she operated the Block Hotel for 11 years, until her marriage.

Mary and Arthur Baehr were united in marriage on May 31, 1941, at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Dorchester. They farmed in the town of Mayville until his death in June 1971, after which she moved back to Dorchester.

She was a member of St. Peter Lutheran Church and the Ladies Aid. She enjoyed cooking, baking, gardening and canning.

Mary is survived by her children, Ruby (Larry) Hafeman of Brookfield, Dennis Baehr of La Crosse and Sue (Bruce) Tessmer of Dorchester. She is further survived by five grandsons, Greg, Mark and Tim (Robin) Hafeman, Brian and Brent Tessmer; a great-granddaughter, Ashlynn Hafeman; one sister, Julianna Niemeyer of Chicago; and one brother, Michael (Adele) Peter of Northlake, Ill.

In addition to her parents and her husband, she was preceded in death by two brothers, Henry and William Peter; one sister, Elizabeth Kish; and two brothers and two sisters in infancy.

Memorials May be given in her name to the Alzheimer's Association or to St. Peter Lutheran Church Ladies Aid.

Maurina/Community Funeral Home of Dorchester assisted the family with arrangements.