Obit: Schuette, Orville D. (1923 - 2014)

Contact: stan@wiclarkcountyhistory.org 

Surnames: Schuette, Peterson, Hedberg, Ovaska, Skrzeczkoski, Heiden, Schulz

----Source: Tribune/Record/Gleaner (Abbotsford, Wis.) 11 Jun 2014

Schuette, Orville D. (14 MAR 1923 - 7 Jun 2014)

Orville D. Schuette, 91, Marshfield, formerly of Curtiss, passed away on Saturday, June 7, 2014, at his residence. A funeral service will be held at noon on Friday, June 13, at Christ Lutheran Church in Abbotsford. Rev. Dr. Gary Paul will officiate. A visitation will be held from 10 a.m. until the time of services at the church. Burial will follow the service at Saint Luke’s Lutheran Cemetery, South Green Grove.

Orville Schuette was born on March 14, 1923, on the home farm in the town of Beaver, to Hugo and Hulda Schuette. He attended Oak Grove grade school and was a 1940 graduate of Colby High School. After high school he worked on the family farm and in a cheese factory. In 1941 Orville went to North Dakota and worked in the grain fields for four months. In May 1942 he worked for the Laufenburg Roofing Company of Milwaukee at Camp McCoy, and at Camp Ellis, Ill. Orville enlisted in the U.S. Army in January 1943 and was a corporal and also a German language interpreter in World War II. He was shipped to England in November 1944 and later fought in the Battle of the Bulge and on the Siegfried Line on Feb. 7. Orville returned to New York on Aug. 19 on the Queen Mary and then finally home on Sept. 1. He received an honorable discharge on Nov. 7, 1945. Orville served with the 76th Infantry Division through three campaigns in Germany, and received the Bronze Star citation for service. Orville married the former Kathryn Peterson on June 28, 1947, at Saint Luke’s Lutheran Church in the town of Green Grove. Together the couple moved to Rockford, Ill., and Orville did carpenter work, they came home in 1951 and took over the home farm until 1967 when they sold the farm due to health problems. He then sold and installed Patz barn equipment from 1961-78 and also built barn additions. They then moved to the village of Curtiss and Orville worked at the Clark County Health Care Center for four years. He started as a substitute mail carrier on the Curtiss and Abbotsford routes in 1972 and retired in 1989 as a full-time carrier. Orville was a member of Christ Lutheran Church and its church choir and served on the church councils of Saint Luke’s, Saint Paul’s and Christ Lutheran churches. He also was a member of the Lutheran Layman’s League for more than 60 years, serving as president of Zone 10. He also served on the Board of Directors of Northern Wisconsin District for 18 years and was honored with Layman of the Year award in 2006. Orville was a member of Colby VFW Post 2227 and the Curtiss Lions Club where he received the Melvin Jones Award in 1996. He also volunteered for the Orphan’s Grain Train. He enjoyed bowling, hunting, fishing and playing cards, and was a World War II enthusiast.

He is survived by his wife, Kathryn, Marshfield; one daughter, Jeanne (Franklin) Hedberg, Branson, Mo.; three grandchildren, Jerrianne (Gary) Ovaska, Ironwood, Mich., Jason (Sara) Skrzeczkoski, Spencer, and Michael Schuette, Madison; seven great-grandchildren, Katie Heiden, Sawyer Taylor, Adam Skrzeczkoski, Amanda Skrzeczkoski, Shawna Young, Gunnar Ovaska and Mikayla Ovaska; one great-great-grandson, Mason Heiden; his siblings, Merlin (Florence) Schuette and Arlene (Calvin) Schulz; and several nieces and nephews.

Orville was preceded in death by his parents; a son, James Schuette; and two sisters, Evelyn (Paul) Schlinsog and Ethel (Francis) Gerber.

The Maurina-Schilling Funeral Home, Abbotsford, is assisting the family with arrangements.