Advertisement Arnold J. Johnson
HOLMEN — Arnold J. Johnson, 93, passed away Tuesday, May 5, 2009, at Grand Veiw Care Center in Blair.
He was born Oct. 16, 1915, in the Long Coulee area of Holmen on the family farm to Anna and Julius P. Johnson. He graduated from Holmen High School and was a member of Holmen Lutheran Church. Arnold was a lifelong resident of Long Coulee until his retirement, when he and his wife, Pearl S. (Olson) Johnson, moved into Holmen. They married Oct. 6, 1946.
Arnold served in World War II in the tank corps under Gen. George Patton. After his military tour, he returned to the Holmen area and started farming on the family farm. After his retirement, he volunteered for Meals-on-Wheels, where he enjoyed conversing with all whom he visited. He enjoyed bowling, golfing, fishing and baseball, especially the Milwaukee Brewers games.
He will be missed by his children, Julie A. (Orris) Olson of Blair, Jerome P. (Barbara) Johnson of Holmen, Sally L. (Lance) Olson of New Richmond, Wis., Randal D. (Shelly) of Genoa, Diane R. Johnson Cooper of Chandler, Ariz., Christine M. (John) Johnson Matel of Vienna, Va., and Lisa K. (Alex) Sandoval of Phoenix; 14 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Pearl; his parents; two brothers, Tillman Johnson and Julian Johnson; three sisters, Edna Anderson Hass, Viola Johnson and Gladys Stremka Stolsmark; and a son-in-law, E. Ray Cooper.
Memorial services will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. at Dickinson Family Funeral Home, 515 McHugh Road, Holmen. The Rev. Roger Grow will officiate, and burial, with military honors, will be in Long Coulee Cemetery. Friends may call at the funeral home Saturday from 10:30 a.m. until time of services. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to Grand View Care Center, P.O. Box 27, Blair, WI 54616.
Elaine U. Emery
ONALASKA — Elaine U. Emery, 86, of Onalaska went to be with the Lord on Monday, May 4, 2009, at her home surrounded by her loving family.
She was born in Minneapolis on Aug. 1, 1922, to Bert and Anna (Nelson) Sanford. She married Benjamin E. Emery on Oct. 26, 1940 in La Crosse.
Elaine was active over the years, volunteering her time at St Paul’s Lutheran Church, Meals on Wheels and Onalaska Care Center. She loved to entertain the care center’s residents with her tap dancing skills that gave her the name of “Twinkle Toes.”
Family was extremely important to Elaine. She spent many enjoyable moments watching her grandchildren and great-grandchildren participate in school sports and activities.
Elaine is survived by her children, Rita Greene of La Crosse, Linda (Robert) Severson of Black River Falls, Gary Emery of Pamona, Calif., Debra (Larry) Jiracek of St Paul, Brenda (Harry) Schwartz of New Ulm, Minn., and RoxAnn (Jeffrey) Karbula of Cape Coral, Fla.; one daughter-in-law Sharon Emery of Holmen; one sister, Phyllis Harms of Aurora, Colo.; 18 grandchildren; and 29 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband; one son, Dennis; three sisters, Evalyn, Florence and Delores; and three brothers, Robert, Orley and Chester.
Private family services will be Friday, May 8, at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Onalaska. The Rev. William Bader will officiate. Burial will follow in Mormon Coulee Memorial Park Cemetery.
Memorials are preferred and may be designated to St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church or to one’s favorite charity.
A special thank you to Gundersen Lutheran’s Critical Care Unit and to their hospice program for their loving care.
Robert ‘Bob’ P. Novak
SUN CITY WEST, Ariz./LA CROSSE — Robert “Bob” P. Novak, 79, of Sun City West and formerly of La Crosse died peacefully in his home Sunday morning, May 3, 2009.
Robert was born in 1930 in Chicago.
He was a proud member of the U.S. Army during the Korean War, serving with the 518th Signal Company Radio Relay, stationed near Pohang, South Korea, from March 1953 through March 1954.
After returning from Korea, Robert met and married Florence Louise Edwards, the love of his life, in 1955. The couple moved to the Burr Oak area of Wisconsin in 1957, and then moved again to La Crosse in 1967. Robert worked for Trane Co. until 1989 and retired from Northern Micrographics in 1992. In 1995, the Novaks moved to Sun City West, where Bob would never again need to shovel the sidewalks in minus 20-degree weather.
Robert is survived by his wife of 54 years, Florence; four sons, Mark of West Salem, and Daniel, David and James of Onalaska; two daughters, Mary of Onalaska and Anne of Minneapolis; six grandchildren, Kevin, April, Kelsey Jo, Taylor, Jared and Sarah; and two great-grandchildren, Alexis and Courtney.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Margaret; and his brother, Peter.
Robert will always be remembered for his quiet abilities and caring. He provided guidance in the use of power tools and towed or fixed any of his children’s many cars. Bob loved to tinker with and fix old TV sets, and he enjoyed many years of building a computer from scratch and writing the operating system and word processor for it.
Visitation will be held at the Camino del Sol Funeral Chapel in Sun City West from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday. The funeral, at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, and burial will take place on Monday.
Floral arrangements may be sent to: Camino del Sol Funeral Chapel at 13738 Camino del Sol, Sun City West, AZ 85375. Or, in lieu of flowers, donations may be made online to St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Charities at catholiccharitieslax.org, or by mail to Development Catholic Charities of La Crosse, 3710 East Ave. S., La Crosse, WI 54602, or to the Salvation Army.
Germaine I. Bantle
LA CROSSE -- Germaine I. Bantle, 92, of La Crosse passed away with her family by her side Saturday, May, 2, 2009, in La Crosse.
She was born in Two Rivers, Wis., on Dec. 31, 1916, to Edward and Ida (Jogodinsky) Goetz. She married Clarence Bantle on Jan. 20, 1938, in Two Rivers, and he preceded her in death in November 1974.
Germaine had worked as a sales clerk for Silbie’s Shoe Store in the Village La Crosse and retired as store manager. She was an avid knitter and especially enjoyed making baby sweaters. Germaine will be remembered for the role model she provided to her family, instilling a work ethic and system of values that they will carry on for years to come.
She was also very involved in the St. Anne’s Altar Society at Holy Trinity Catholic Church.
She is survived by her children, Elizabeth Viner of Onalaska, William (Mary) Bantle of Suttons Bay, Mich., and Margaret (George J.) Bell of La Crosse; her grandsons, Robert Viner, Steven (Donna) Viner and Mark (Kathy) Viner, all of Onalaska; her granddaughters, Kristin (David Gibbs) Bantle of Branch, Mich., Kelly (Chris) Bantle-Miller of Belmont Mich., Catherine (Calvin) Robertson of Waukesha, Wis., and Amy M. Bell of La Crosse; and 11 great-grandchildren.
In addition to her parents and her husband, Clarence, she was preceded in death by an infant son, Robert; one sister, Esther Stegemann; and one son-in-law, Darryl Viner.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 9, at Holy Trinity Catholic Church. The Rev. Lawrence B. Berger will officiate. Burial will follow in Woodlawn Cemetery La Crosse. Friends may call at the church on Saturday from 10 a.m. until the time of services. Schumacher-Kish Funeral Home of La Crosse is in charge of arrangements.
“We love you, grandma.”
Paul F. Schmieder Sr.
SPARTA — Paul F. Schmieder Sr., 87, died Sunday, May 3, 2009, at Franciscan Skemp Healthcare in Sparta.
He was born on Nov. 5, 1921, in Adrian, Monroe County, Wis., to Paul P. and Lydia (Bold) Schmieder. He grew up in Tomah. He joined the U.S. Army and served in World War II and was stationed in the Pacific Theater.
He married Marvilla Loether on June 12, 1954. Paul lived in Milwaukee and moved back to Sparta upon retirement.
He is survived by his children, Dennis (Kathleen) of Onalaska, Paul (special friend Patricia Dani) of Nadeau, Mich., and Linda of Sparta; two grandchildren, Joshua of Fitchburg, Wis., and Charissa of Onalaska; brother and sisters, Bernadine VanKirk of Sparta, Martin Schmieder of Evansville, Wis., Beverly Heilman of Tomah, and Irene (Ron) Jensen of Sparta; and nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Marvilla; three brothers, Virgil Schmieder, Clayton Rich and Charles Rich; and one sister, Marie Smith.
Funeral services will be at noon Saturday at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Tomah. Family and friends may call at the church on Saturday from 10 a.m. until time of services. There will be a private family burial at a later time.
Lanham-Miller Funeral Home of Sparta is assisting the family with funeral arrangements.
Donna M. Kramer
LA CROSSE -- Donna M. Kramer, 76, of La Crosse died on Monday, May 4, 2009, at Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center surrounded by her family.
She was born on Oct. 28, 1932, in Lansing, Iowa, to Leo and Esther (Herman) McNally. Donna moved to Wisconsin in the early 1940s and graduated from Central High School in 1950. She married Kenneth W. Kramer on April 7, 1951, in Holy Cross Catholic Church. Donna was a Lector and Communion Minister for 13 years at Cathedral of St. Joseph the Workman. She was a supervisor at La Crosse Garment Company for over 10 years and then managed the Fabric Care Laundry and Dry Cleaning for 15 years. She retired to part-time and worked at the La Crosse Center for nearly 10 years until retiring in 1997. Donna was a member of the Women of the Moose-College of Regents. She enjoyed camping, dancing, playing cards, watching the Brewers and spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
She is survived by her husband, Kenneth; seven children, Kenneth L. (Sharon) of Holmen, Michael M. of La Crosse, Jeffrey L. (Sherrie) of La Crosse, Pamela K. (Richard) Veglahn of La Crosse, Rand J. (Maureen) of Holmen, Kathryn A. Craig (Gale Buchholtz) of La Crosse and Dianne E. (William) Briggs of La Crosse; 21 grandchildren; 18 great-grandchildren; three sisters, Joyce Norman of West Salem, Jeannie Beaudrie of Riverview, Mich., and Dorothy (Don) Goldsmith of Mount Pleasant, S.C., and two sisters-in-law, Dolores Zimmerman of La Crosse and Eleanor Kramer of La Crosse.
She was preceded in death by her parents; a daughter, Kimberly; a grandson, Joshua; a son-in-law, Michael Craig; and brothers and sisters-in-law.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10 a.m. Friday, May 8, at Cathedral of St. Joseph the Workman in La Crosse. The Rev. Michael Gorman will officiate. Burial will be in the Mormon Coulee Memorial Park Cemetery. Friends may call at Schumacher-Kish Funeral Home of La Crosse on Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m. and at the church on Friday from 9 a.m. until time of services. A rosary will be recited Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred.
