Bio: Moeller-Mallory, Theresa – 100th Birthday (4 Oct
2023)
Transcriber: Stan
Surnames: Moeller, Mallory, Tyler, Schmidtke, Finnigan
----Source: TRG (Abbotsford, Clark Co., Wis.) 04 Oct 2023
Theresa Moeller-Mallory has reached a milestone that few achieve in our society.
Today, Oct. 4, is her 100th birthday.
“It’s a funny thing – you don’t think about it (your age) and then all of a
sudden you’re there,” she said.
Theresa, who lives about 10 miles outside of Granton in the Sherwood area, still
maintains an independent lifestyle. She lives in her own home and takes care of
her adult son with Parkinson’s disease. She also cooks her own meals and drives
a Chevy Spark with some “get up and go,” she said.
Although she has not had an easy life by any standard, Theresa has determined to
stay optimistic and take life as it comes, an attitude that has helped her
through many trying circumstances.
Theresa was born Theresa Ida Moeller to Adam and Nettie Moeller on Oct. 4, 1923,
in Jackson City, Iowa. She had three older siblings, Earl, Lydia and Cecil, and
two younger siblings, Axel and Susan. She is the last living sibling.
Her family moved to central Wisconsin when she was still a baby, settling not
far from where Theresa lives now, in the town of Sherwood, by the Lutheran
church on Highway 73. Her dad purchased 80 acres of property, which Theresa is
proud to say still remains in the family, the land divided between three of her
dad’s grandchildren.
From a humble beginning, Theresa remembers a time before the many conveniences
of today, such as a washer and dryer, controlled heat and microwaves. As kids,
Theresa and her siblings picked string beans and pickles as a cash crop. She
remembers ordering groceries and clothes from the Sears Roebuck or Montgomery
Ward catalogue. The milkman would deliver their groceries.
Her dad made money by cutting wood and selling it, and making kindling.
The family didn’t stay in Sherwood for long. Before Theresa turned 10, the
family moved back and forth to Iowa several times, traveling in a cattle truck
with just a few possessions. She lived in several locations throughout Clark
County and attended one-room schools, including Birdland Echo in the town of
Sherwood, Riverside school by Neillsville and Audubon in the town of Sherwood.
“I had more teachers than I had grades; I moved that much,” said Theresa.
When Theresa was 10, her mother passed away and the family moved back to Clark
County for good. Theresa’s dad built a log house for them, which was finished by
the time Theresa was 11. There were just two rooms, the downstairs and upstairs.
There were three beds upstairs with curtains dividing them.
“We had two stoves in there. In other words, we had the cook stove and the
heater was right behind it, and that all went up through the stove pipe chimney.
It wasn’t brick; just the stove pipe. Not very safe — we had to watch it so you
didn’t have a chimney fire,” said Theresa.
In ninth grade, Theresa attended Granton High School. There was no bus route at
that time and it was too far to walk, so she boarded with Fred and Susan Tyler.
Her second year of high school, she stayed with the William Schmidtke family in
town, and the last two years of high school, she stayed with the Chester
Finnigan family.
Theresa kept busy with household chores for her host families and schoolwork.
However, when she did have free time, she found many fun activities to do. She
and her siblings spent many hours swimming and skating on Sherwood Lake. She
also enjoyed rollerskating in Hatfield and at the Sherwood Town Hall, dancing at
the Silver Dome and watching movies for 25 cents at the Neillsville theater. She
learned to drive in an open meadow by Sherwood Park, now grown up with trees.
Theresa graduated in the Granton High School Class of 1941, a class of 30. She
married Marvin Mallory the following year, on March 28, 1942. Marvin had
graduated in 1936.
“The war was going on, so we rushed to get married because we thought he’d have
to go into the service,” said Theresa.
The newlyweds lived in Granton in the old feed mill house by the railroad
tracks, bought from Marvin’s mother. In 1942, Marvin bought the land where
Theresa lives now and built a two-bedroom house out of lumber from the
surrounding forest. They moved there in 1943 after the birth of Rochelle, their
firstborn.
Soon their marriage was put to the test, when Marvin was called up to serve in
the U.S. Army. On Dec. 27, 1944, Theresa received a telegram stating that her
husband had been “slightly wounded” a month earlier in western Germany. After
jumping in a foxhole, Marvin had his left thumb shot at and lost most of it. He
spent a year in a hospital in California having surgery and recovering.
In the meantime, Theresa lived in Granton with Marvin’s mother.
“Of course, we had rationing, so we couldn’t drive a lot. Gasoline was rationed,
food, sugar. Sugar was the hardest for us,” said Theresa.
Eventually Marvin returned and he and Theresa continued to expand their family.
Their second child, Judith, was born in 1946, followed by three boys: Jack,
Michael and Ken. There is a 20-year span between the oldest and the youngest
child.
Marvin worked many places while the kids were growing up. He manufactured parts
for machines and worked in factories in Beloit and Rockford, Ill. For several
years, he went to work in Illinois and would come home a couple of weekends a
month, while Theresa stayed home raising the kids.
They also lived in a mining town in Montana. “We got there in November and he
left in January, because there was no work. He went to Salt Lake City and
couldn’t find work, so he went on down to California. He had two sisters living
there,” said Theresa.
Marvin got a job in Fontana, California, in the steel mill. He lived out of his
car and worked to save up money until he was able to get a trailer. Then the
family piled in the car and drove out there to join him. Soon they were able to
save up enough money to rent a house, “but we didn’t have any furniture; we just
had what we put in the car — a dish and spoon for each one of us, a couple
kettles and canned venison that we canned in Montana,” said Theresa. “So you do
what you gotta do.”
But then the steel strike of 1952 happened, leaving Marvin out of work again. So
he returned to Montana to cut timber in a national park north of Livingston.
They experienced the Yellowstone earthquake of 1959. Eventually, they moved back
to Wisconsin and Marvin went to work in Illinois. In addition to her own kids,
Theresa also had to watch her sister-in-law’s five kids for about nine months
after her sister-in-law got sick and had to have surgery.
In 1965, when their youngest was 2, the family moved to Illinois, and the kids
went to school in Byron. By the 1980s, the kids were all grown. There would be
more challenges yet to come in Theresa’s life, however. In 1985, her son Michael
passed away at age 28 from cancer. Marvin passed away in 1989 after suffering a
massive heart attack at O’Hare Airport when he went to pick up some visiting
family members.
“That was my biggest challenge, was getting along without having him to support
me,” said Theresa.
She ended up taking a CNA course and in 1993, moved back to Wisconsin. She
worked for Clark County Community Care providing in-home health care. After
that, she provided private care in people’s homes when needed. She semi-retired
at age 72, although she continued to work part-time at a cranberry marsh for two
years.
After fully retiring, she volunteered for many years at the nursing home in
Neillsville, making corsages for people’s birthdays and helping with the weekly
music program for residents. She was part of the Sherwood Community Club, which
made quilts for people monthly.
Into her later years, she has kept up with several interests. She likes to play
dominoes with her niece and nephew, Patty and Roger Mallory, whenever she can.
Also, “I love to put puzzles together. I enjoy canning. I also used to sew a
lot,” said Theresa.
She credits her involvement in 4-H as a child with teaching her how to can and
sew. She has made many baby quilts. She also made her sister’s wedding dress and
a quilt out of old winter coats. When she had a garden for feeding her family,
she would can as many as 400 quarts of food for the winter.
She also likes to use Facebook or Zoom to stay in touch with her family members,
of which there are many. She has nine grandchildren, plus more
great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren. Her oldest great-great
grandchild is almost 20 years old. Besides grandchildren, she also has many
nieces and nephews, as her brother had nine children, one sister had nine
children and another sister had six children.
Living to a century old is not unheard of in Theresa’s family, as she has two
cousins who lived to be almost 100.
“My dad had six brothers and six sisters, and a lot of them lived to be close to
100,” Theresa added.
Theresa had a few pieces of advice for how to live a long life.
“Keep busy. Try to think positive — I do. It’s like a lot of things — the
tragedy of my husband dying suddenly in an airport, in spite of that, it worked
out. We got everything done. It wasn’t all bad, in as much as I had family and
friends to help me. Family and friends are very important when there’s a crisis,
and I had my share of that.
“I always say, ‘If you can do something about something, do it. If you can’t,
let God take care of it. Just leave it in His hands and you’ll survive. Because
it’s no use in fretting about anything that you can’t do anything about. You
just waste your time worrying.’” Theresa plans to celebrate her special day with
a birthday party at the Granton Community Center on Saturday.
School: Loyal H.S. – Homecoming Court (Sep 2023)
Transcriber: Stan
Surnames: Pearson, Rueth, Schubert, Genteman, Strey, Nikolai, Wunrow, Smrcka,
Peroshek, Whitegull, Jordan
----Source: TRG (Abbotsford, Clark Co., Wis.) 04 Oct 2023
Loyal High School has announced the members of its homecoming court, who were
recognized at the school’s homecoming dance Sept. 23, 2023.
The Homecoming Court was as follows: freshman representatives Aaliyah Pearson
and Payton Rueth, senior representatives Ashley Schubert and Connor Genteman,
Queen Danielle Strey, King Louis Nikolai, senior representatives Jisselle Wunrow
and Aiden Smrcka, and junior representatives Hope Peroshek and Tryn Scheel,
sophomore representatives Tallulah Whitegull and Heath Jordan.
News North Clark Co. – Vets Honor Flight To
Washington, D.C. (Sep 2023)
Transcriber: Stan
Surnames: Broeske, Bernt, Neuman, Hamann, Schreiber
----Source: Tribune/Phonograph (Abbotsford, Clark Co., Wis.) 04 Oct 2023
Five area veterans joined over 100 others on the Never Forgotten Honor Flight’s
45th mission to Washington D.C.
The Honor Flight, based out of Wausau, took 111 veterans to Washington D.C. to
observe memorials of fallen soldiers in the Korean and Vietnam wars. Five
veterans, Marv Broeske, Abbotsford, Helmut Bernt, Abbotsford, Wayne Neuman,
Colby, Richard Hamann, Curtiss, and Galen Schreiber, Athens, all participated in
the event which was free to veterans.
Broeske, who served in the Army National Guard during the Berlin Crisis and
spent 1955-1966 in total in the service, said the trip was a fun, but humbling
experience.
“It was really a wonderful time,” Broeske said. “The people we went with were
great. The volunteers were great. The memorials were great.”
He said if he had to change one thing, it might have been the weather as it
rained for a good portion of the tour in the nation’s capital. Broeske said he
has wanted to go on this trip for a long time but it took him three years to be
chosen for the Honor Flight.
The trip began on Sunday, September 24 with a meet and greet in Wausau. Food was
catered in by 2510 restaurant and a band with live music and a social period.
The 111 veterans along with 62 guardians were flown out of Mosinee at 6:30 a.m.
and arrived in Washington D.C. a couple of hours later. Four buses picked up the
attendees and transported them to the various memorials. Arby’s was catered to
the veterans on the buses which normally would have been something that could
have been enjoyed at a park or memorial but due to the rain, they had to eat on
the bus.
Hamann said one of the things that impressed him the most was the reception the
veterans were given when they went place to place. He said in Washington D.C.
the buses were given police escorts to go from memorial to memorial. Hamann said
when they finally arrived at the Mosinee airport after a long day, there were
hundreds of people in attendance waiting to welcome them back from the journey.
He said the warm reception was something that was missing from Vietnam veterans
when they returned home from the war in the 1960s.
Broeske said he was really impressed with the volunteers that helped facilitate
the trip and said he spoke to one of the volunteers that had traveled to Wausau
from Minneapolis to help out with the trip.
The trip helped Broeske reflect on his time during the service as he rekindled
memories of training at the old armory building in Abbotsford with 100 fellow
soldiers. He was able to look back on his time being deployed at Fort Lewis in
Washington State and remember those he served with.
“We had some great times and bad times but that is what it’s all about,” Broeske
said.
Hamann echoed what Broeske had to say about the event calling it “awesome.”
“It was awesome. It was indescribable what they did for veterans and how they
treat you as you’re out there and coming back. I don’t know what words to use.
It was just fantastic.”
Hamann said his guardian was someone he hadn’t met before the trip but he got to
know the person very well and she was very knowledgeable about the memorial
sites and the best way to visit them.
It’s the organization’s 45th flight since the first Never Forgotten Honor Flight
took place April 27, 2010. After the September 25 trip, the Never Forgotten
Honor Flight has flown 4,297 veterans to Washington, D.C. All veterans that
served prior to May 7, 1975 are encouraged to submit an application (via the
NFHF web site, or by calling 715-573-8519). The only criteria for veterans to
qualify for an Honor Flight is to have served (active duty, reserves or National
Guard) prior to May 7, 1975, regardless of where they served.
The next flight is scheduled for October 16 and will carry over 100 veterans to
see the memorials as well.
School: Abbotsford H.S. – Class of 1968 55th Reunion
(21 Sep 2023)
Transcriber: Stan
Surnames: Lange, Schillinger, Kattre, Polzin, Ridderbush, Nikolay, Kralcik,
Maslanka, Degenhardt, Gierl, Lapp, Viegut, Schraufnagel
----Source: Tribune/Phonograph (Abbotsford, Clark Co., Wis.) 04 Oct 2023
The class of 1968 Abbotsford High School gathered September 21 at Country Aire
Restaurant, Stratford to celebrate their 55th class reunion. Sixteen classmates
attended the reunion accompanied by two spouses.
Those attending enjoyed a lunch buffet and conversation into the afternoon with
everyone. A table was set up with pictures, information and a candle was lit for
the deceased classmates. A poem was also read for them.
Those who have passed on are: Judy Lange, Judith Schillinger, Rodney Kattre,
Mary Polzin, Susie Ridderbush, Mary Nikolay, Richard Kralcik, David Maslanka,
Debra Degenhardt, David Gierl, Rick Lapp and Shawn Viegut.
Plans are being made to meet locally next June for an impromptu lunch with
Trudee Schraufnagel.
BioM: Marriage Licenses (Sep/Oct - 2023)
Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail:
dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Borntrager, Yoder, Weaver, Gerretsen, Pettit, Radue, Ligman, Harm,
Lindner, Peskie, Jakobi, Sauder, Hoover, Ten Napel, Wolf, Franz, Schofield,
Horning, Zimmerman, Martin, DuBois, Kurasz, Wriedt, Kostick, Brubacher, Ringler
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 10/4/2023
Marriage Licenses (Sep/Oct - 2023)
Felty J. Borntrager, Township of Lynn, to Rosie E. Yoder, Township of Fremont,
Sept. 21, at the Township of Fremont.
Daryl L. Weaver, Township of Beaver to Lynette H. Weaver, Township of Hendren,
Sept. 23, at the Township of Lynn.
Dominie A. Gerretsen, to Cassandra A. Pettit, both of Township of Fremont, Oct.
14, at the Township of Lynn.
Jordan S. Radue, to Valire V.M. Ligman, both of city of Loyal, Sept. 14 at the
Township of Loyal.
Mark D. Harm, Town of Sherman, to Morgan C. Lindner, Township of Loyal, Sept.
30, at city of Loyal,
Taylor J. Peskie, Marathon County, to Jenna R. Jakobi, Wood County, Oct. 7, in
Wood County.
Jason W. Sauder, Township of Reseburg, to Minerva E. Hoover, Township of Hizon,
Oct. 10, at the Township of Hixon.
Alexander J. Ten Napel, Wood County, to Ella M. Wolf, Township of Fremont, Oct.
28, at the Township of Grant.
Matthew A. Franz, Oneida County, to Zoey E. Schofield, Marathon County, Oct. 7,
at the Township of Mead.
James W. Horning, Jr., Township of Hoard, to Apphia D. Zimmerman, Township of
Warner, Oct. 17, at the Township of Warner.
Timothy M. Martin, Township of Hixon, to Leanne R. Zimmerman, Township of
Beaver, Oct. 23, at the Township of Beaver.
Edward M DuBois, to Sarah A. E. Kurasz, both of Wood County, Oct. 22, in Wood
County.
Dayton L. Wriedt, to Alexis R. Kostick, both of Township of Hendren, Oct. 7, at
Township of Reseburg.
Marvin H. Brubacher, to Kaitlyn R.; Ringler, both of Township of Reseburg, Oct.
24, at the Township of Reseburg.
Lavon S. Brubacher, Township of Worden, to Rosene Z. Zimmerman, Township of
Withee, Oct. 19, at the Township of Withee.
News: Greenwood - Clark Electric People Show
Appreciation (2023)
Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail:
dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Stewart
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 10/4/2023
Clark Electric Co-op Shows members Some Appreciation (2023)
Volunteers from the local co-ops and Uncle Pancakes set up breakfast to serve to
attendees of the Clark Electric Co-op Member Appreciation Day breakfast. L.
B./Clark County Press
By L. B., reporter
Clark Electric Co-op hosted the annual Member Appreciation Day Sept. 23. The day
is for members of all cooperatives in Clark County and is a kickoff to October,
which is “co-op month.”
Member Appreciation Day was hosted at the Clark Electric headquarters. A free
pancake, egg, sausage and cheese curd breakfast was served to all attendees.
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office held a drug takeback initiative during the
breakfast where unused, controlled, noncontrolled and over-the-counter
medications in their original containers could be dropped off for free with no
questions asked.
Greenwood EMS provided free blood pressure testing and Marshfield Medical Center
and the Clark County Health Department provided free medical information to the
community.
“We usually serve around 825–1,050 people a year,” Tim Stewart said, CEO/general
manager of Clark Electric Co-op. “We ask members and the community to bring food
donations to put in the big box, and that all goes to the Greenwood Food Pantry.
“We have kids’ activities where they get to decorate a pumpkin and paint a
picture frame. We’ve learned as we’ve gone and made things more kid focused. We
get a good turnout nonetheless.”
There were a total of nine student volunteers from Loyal and Greenwood school
districts. PowerPac provided scooters and rides for people directing traffic.
Uncle Pancakes, a breakfast business, served pancakes, sausages, eggs and cheese
curds for breakfast.
“This is a way to say that we appreciate our members and that we’re here to
serve them,” Stewart said.
News: Colby - Railroad History Presented at Community
Library (2023)
Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail:
dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Clark, McIndoe, Colby
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 10/4/2023
Colby Community Library Goes Down The Rails of History (2023)
Ben Clark of the Marathon County Historical Society presented the history of
railroads in Colby at the Colby Community Library for over 40 people. He spoke
about the geography, politics and financial sides of the railroad while
explaining the terminology in a way the kids in attendance could understand. L.B./Clark
County Press
By L.B., reporter
The arrival of trains drastically changed how Wisconsinites lived their lives
and even shaped the state of Wisconsin in surprising ways.
Ben Clark of the Marathon County Historical Society presented the story of how
the building of the Wisconsin Central Railroad directly led to the creation of
Colby. The free event was sponsored by the Rural Arts Museum and hosted by the
Colby Community Library Sept. 21.
Clark spoke to over 40 people in attendance, explaining old county maps,
geographical terms and county lines so everyone could understand.
His presentation began in the early 1800s, when the territory in the Colby area
of northern Wisconsin was undeveloped.
“There were no farms in the area, just logging towns,” Clark said.
He spoke about the development of railroads in relation to the Civil War, when
the government decided it would be profitable to transport the natural resources
of northern Wisconsin to the war front.
“Walter McIndoe found a loophole, and he tweaked the laws so that any railroad
would have to go through Marathon County,” Clark said.
Work began on a 250-mile railroad track from Menasha to Ashland, but the work
was halted because of financial difficulties caused in part by the economic
crisis in Europe and major fires in both Boston and Chicago.
It seemed as though the project would collapse, but Gardner Colby, an Eastern
financier who was president of the railroad company, succeeded in raising funds
for the project. The place where work had stopped became a settlement of about
100 inhabitants, initially called Station 51, before its name was changed to
Colby, after Gardner’s son, Charles L. Colby.
When the rail line was completed, settling increased rapidly, and sawmills,
farming settlements and more townships were set up.
Clark spoke about the money troubles, politics and eventual consolidation of the
three main rail companies into one: the Wisconsin Central Line. This rail line
was eventually taken over by the Soo Line, which has since been acquired by the
Canadian National Railroad.
The memory of local railroad history is kept alive by the Colby Rural Arts
Museum.
News: Greenwood - New Winery Opens (2023)
Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail:
dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Wold, Susa, Lucas, Wuethrich, Branstiter, Hanson, Amacher, Lindner,
Nyberg, Anderson, Luepke
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 10/4/2023
New Winery Opens in Greenwood (2023)
In August, (l-r) Den and Jessica Wolf and Chuck and Casey Susa stand in front of
the recently completed sign inside the 1891 Winery, which used to be the
Centuries on Main building in Greenwood, hoping to open soon. L. B./Clark County
Press
By L. B., reporter
Chuck Susa and his wife, Casey, purchased the building that was formerly
Centuries on Main in Greenwood in November 2022 from Michelle Lucas and Tonia
Wuethrich.
The pair had hoped to open a new winery in the month of August. Oct. 1, The
Susas, along with Dan and Jessica Wolf, opened 1891 Winery.
The couple had searched for any existing property to enact their plan, which was
years in the making.
“It was a long process,” Chuck Susa said. “We even looked at [buying] Munsen
Bridge Winery, but it didn’t work out. That was what got us thinking about a
winery.
“August of [2022], the sale of the building fell through, so it was back on the
market, and we decided it’d be the perfect home for what we’re trying to do.”
Chuck Susa had to get many licenses to legally open the business and got the
final necessary permit on July 12.
“I’ve been making wine for a little while now,” Chuck Susa said. “I picked it up
from where my mom left off. She acquired some fruit and a neighbor suggested
making wine, so it’s kind of a family tradition, I guess.”
“We’re still working on pictures from the history room in Neillsville,” Casey
Susa said.
The pair plans to make the winery both a place for families and friends to relax
and for citizens to recount the history of Greenwood.
“We want it to be different than a bar,” said Casey Susa. “We want families to
come in, have some wine, relax, sit with friends and look at pictures and the
historical objects.”
Some of the wines served are named after the first settlers in Greenwood. The
Branstiter Museum donated photo albums for the new owners to learn from and
incorporate into the design. The Susas made the tables and chairs out of lumber
from Greenwood power poles and tin from an old furniture building, as well as a
building Chuck Susa’s father worked at.
“We were born and raised in Greenwood,” Chuck Susa said. “Our parents live here,
and our grandparents helped build this town. They passed the torch, and we want
to give back, make the community better than we left it, especially for the
younger generation.”
The goal for the Susas’ new business is to celebrate Greenwood’s history and
look to the past to learn and guide the community in the future.
“The name of the winery is 1891 Winery,” Chuck Susa said. “The name comes from
the year Greenwood was established.”
The 1891 Winery serves many kinds of wine, pop, beer, water, pizzas, cheese,
crackers, homemade pretzels and more.
The owners reported that the previous owners and their family have been
supportive in their business.
The grand opening day and open house was led with a ribbon cutting, with the
mayor, David Hansen, and members of the Clark County Economic Development
Corporation and Tourism Bureau’s board, Nancy Amacher and Pat Lindner in
attendance, as well as its executive director, Shelia Nyberg.
Supporters flooded into the open house, making themselves at home in moments.
The event featured live music from Jordan Anderson.
The Luepke family, good friends of the owners, took up one of the center tables
in the winery, coming all the way from Spencer, before heading home to watch the
Dallas Cowboys play against the New England Patriots.
Edward DuBois contributed to this article.
News: Clark County - Western Tech College (Pres. List
- 2023)
Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail:
dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Lagasse, Medinger
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 10/4/2023
Clark County-Western Tech College (Pres. List - 2023)
Ian Legasse of Thorp and Clara Medinger of Neillsville were named to the Western
Technical College president’s list of high distinction for the summer 2023 term.
To be included on the president’s list, students must achieve a grade point
average of 3.5 or higher and carry six or more credits in an associate’s degree
or technical diploma program.
Obit: Benzinger, Philip James (1941 - 2023)
Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail:
dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Benzinger, Deates, Krueger, Bird, Ackeret, Lasecki, Heggemeier,
Pedersen
----Source: Maurina-Schilling Funeral Home (Owen, Clark Co., WI) 10/04/2023
Benzinger, Philip James (8 December 1941 – 29 September 2023) With Flag
Philip James Benzinger, 81, most recently of Owen, passed away peacefully
surrounded by loved ones on September 29, 2023, while residing at Clark County
Rehab and Living Center under the tender care of Promedica Hospice.
Phil was born on December 8, 1941, in Merrill, to Margie (Deates) and Albert
Benzinger. He was baptized at St. Francis Xavior Church on January 25, 1942. He
was a long time member of St. Mark's Lutheran Church of Wausau and later of St.
John's Lutheran Church of Withee.
He was a loving younger brother to Gary (Lois) Benzinger of Merrill and older
brother to Jack (Sue) Benzinger of Sturgeon Bay, Carol (Jerry) Bird of Wausau,
Sandy (Perry) Ackeret of Stevens Point, Colleen (Larry) Lasecki of Green Bay and
Scott (Julie) Benzinger of Wausau. He was the uncle to many nieces and nephews
through his siblings and by marriage whom he loved dearly and enjoyed visiting
with them any chance he got.
He would often tell childhood stories of exploring the outdoors, bird hunting
and swimming in the river out to the island. He loved playing baseball and
basketball, being with family and friends and playing a good prank on his
siblings or mom. He graduated from Merrill High School on May 26, 1960. It is
there he met the love of his life, Wanda Jean Krueger, and they were married on
Oct. 6, 1962.
Shortly after the wedding, Phil left for Air Force basic training. Afterwards,
Phil and Wanda moved to Texas and lived on base while he served. After a short
stint, Phil and Wanda returned to Merrill. Their journey together found them
also living in Waupaca and Wausau. Phil was a loving, dedicated husband and took
care of Wanda through many illnesses. Shortly after Wanda passed on August 18,
2008, Phil moved to Owen to be with his family.
Phil loved working with and getting to know people. He had many jobs as a kid,
creating his hard work ethic, but as an adult, he started working as a meat
cutter and eventually was co-owner of a grocery store. For most of his career,
he worked in sales. He was a successful salesman, known for his friendly
personality and trustworthy customer service. He started out by selling
insurance and as a Phillips Liquor Distributor. He worked for a short time at
Wausau Paper Mill where he learned about the mechanical process there. He then
took that knowledge and his sales experience to work for Able Distributing of
Wausau and later for Mechanical Supply out of Escanaba, MI. He ended his working
years in another customer service role at Sir Speedy in Wausau.
In 1968, while living in Wausau, Phil and Wanda had their daughter Kay Lynn. He
was a loving and caring dad who was active in her life. He had been her Sunday
School teacher and bowling coach. He shared his love of the outdoors, taking her
camping and teaching her how to fish. He passed on his love of grilling and
taking the back roads.
His family grew more when Kay Lynn (Benzinger) married Paul Heggemeier Sr. of
Owen. He was later blessed with 6 grandchildren Heather Rae (Ben) Pedersen of
Eau Claire, Tiffany of Owen, Emily of Allenton, Stephany of Chippewa Falls, PJ
of Altoona and Benjamin of Eau Claire. He passed away with joy in his heart,
knowing a great grandson was on the way. He loved being a grandpa. He was always
available for sleepovers and adventures. He was their biggest fan, coming to as
many sporting events and performances as possible.
You might have known him as Phil, PJ, Benny, Mr. B, Grandpa B. or Schlop. But if
you knew him, you knew of his big smile and warm personality. He was loved and
will be dearly missed by many.
On Friday, October 13th, the family of Phil Benzinger will be holding a
visitation from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. and a Memorial Service at 6:00 p.m. at St.
John’s Lutheran Church in Withee, WI with a Celebration Of Life to follow at
IGYs Bar and Grill also in Withee. Military Honors provided by the Owen American
Legion Post #123, Owen-Withee Vets Club and Thorp VFW Post #9057.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Philip, please visit
our floral store.
