Obituaries from The Post Crescent, Appleton Wisconsin Sunday 02 April 2000 Bonita L. Bishop Appleton Age 92, passed away on Saturday, April 1, 2000. She was born on May 21, 1907, in Appleton, the daughter of the late Peter and Lillie (Schultz) Peterson. She is survived by four daughters, Marion (Wally) Finley, Ruth (Neal) Jensen, Diana (Gary) Rosploch, and Judy Bishop; seven sons, Arthur (Josette), Harold (Cora Lee), Alvin (Barbara), Orlyn, Ried, and Kenneth, and Glen (Betty); a sister-in-law, Shirley Aschenbrenner; a daughter-in- law Debbie Bishop; 29 grandchildren, 36 great-grandchildren, three great-great-grandchildren, and many loving nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband, Arthur; a son, Peter; a daughter, Gloria Mayer, and a great-granddaughter, Casandra. Funeral services will be conducted on Wednesday at 11 a.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 209 South Allen Street. Interment will take place at Riverside Cemetery. Friends may call at the Wichmann Funeral Home on Tuesday from 4-8 p.m. and on Wednesday at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of the service. WICHMANN FUNERAL HOME 537 North Superior Street Appleton 739-1231 Mrs. John E. De Bruin (Nettie) 414 Van Den Broek Street Little Chute Age 87, passed away Saturday, April 1, 2000, at the St. Paul Home, Kaukauna, where she resided for the past two months after breaking her hip. Nettie was born on April 8, 1912, to Johanna (Annie) and Martin Peerenboom. She married John (Gene) E. De Bruin on November 24, 1931. Nettie and John were married for 68 years this past November. Nettie loved to sew and spend time in her favorite sun room where her knowledge, compassion and loving ways passed from one generation to the next. Nettie cared for everyone else first and will always be remembered as a special person with a heart of gold. We will always cherish her forever... Nettie and John had three children who survive, Joanne (Jerry) Verbeten, Marion (Bill) Marvin, and LeRoy (Ceceila) De Bruin. She is further survived by her sister, Marie Gillette, and two special nieces, JoAnn Gillette and Maryanne (Joe) Van Hammond, and her special nephew, Chuck (Fugi) Gillette. She has 15 grandchildren, Mary Ann (Gary) Mounce, Gary (Sue) Verbeten, Jeannie (Greg) De Bruin, Geralyn (Larry) Harkness, Carol (Dave) Appleton, Laurie Reoyo, Susanne De Bruin, Renee De Bruin, Janice (Robert) Koeber, Mark De Bruin, Paul De Bruin, Thomas (Stacey) De Bruin, David (Amanda) De Bruin, Daniel De Bruin, and Sharon De Bruin. She also has 16 great- grandchildren, John De Bruin, Thomas and Jacob Appleton, Ashlie and Lukas Mounce, Michelle, Andy, Benny, Jared De Bruin, Jenny and Nickolas Harkness, Frankie and Nicholas Reoyo, Nick, Melissa, and Emily Verbeten. She was preceded in death by her parents, Johanna (Annie) and Martin Peerenboom, her brother-in- law, Ralph Gillette, and her husband's sisters and brothers and his parents. Our family would like to extend our thanks to the entire staff at the St. Paul Home for the special care and kindness to Nettie and her family. LOVE IS AGELESS. This poem describes Nettie - Wife, Mom, Grandmother and Great-Grandmother the best: You gave so much, so often, In so many special ways... In loving words of comfort, In happy words of praise, In taking time to talk awhile, In trying to understand, In sharing other people's joys, In helping when you can... Your special way of giving love In everything you do Makes your gift the best of all... The priceless gift of you... Friends may call at St. John's Catholic Church, Little Chute, Monday, April 3, at 3 p.m. at the CHURCH until the time of the Mass at 5 p.m. Msgr.. Jim Vanden Hogen and Deacon Vincent De Groot officiating. Verkuilen Funeral Home is assisting the family. Joan F. Gardner Age 87, died on March 31 after a short illness. She died a peaceful, spiritual death, surrounded by the members of her family. She is the daughter of William and Anna (Moynihan) Feeney. Survivors include her daughter, Nancy (Frank) Label of New Berlin; daughter, Constance (Robert) Vanden Burgt of Green Bay; daughter, Joan (Roger) Nuernberg of Appleton; and son, Bill (Kathy) Gardner of Appleton. She is also survived by 15 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. Joan was preceded in death by her parents and a twin brother, William Feeney; a sister, Catherine Heaphy; and a brother, Ralph Moynihan. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Monday, April 3, at the WICHMANN FUNERAL HOME, 537 N. Superior St., Appleton. Friends may call from 11 a.m. until the time of service. The Reverend Steve Nickel and the Reverend Daniel Spina will officiate. Joan was a graduate of Mercy College in Detroit and received her master's degree in music from the University of Chicago. Though music did not become her profession, she was never far from her piano. Music and dance remained part of her life to the very end, and some of her proudest moments (outrageously proud!) were seeing her children and grandchildren perform. Besides her musical background, Joan was a master of the English language. She put her language skills to work as a longtime proofreader for the Appleton Post-Crescent where she claims no misspellings or grammatical errors slipped by "the parts she read" from 1948 to 1973. Intensely proud of her Irish heritage (Feeney, Moynihan) she thought St. Patrick's Day should be celebrated as often as possible during the year. She had a wonderful sense of humor and loved to laugh. When listening to any humorous story she would be well into laughter long before the punch line. While Irish to the core, she welcomed into her family Dutch, German and Polish in-laws and even came to find some virtue in their stock. Still, when all was said and done, your "ordinary Hollander" did not measure up to a "fine Irish lad." Joan was brought up a traditional Irish Catholic but did not think God favored one church over another. She belonged to both the Catholic church and the Assemblies of God, and found God and spiritual strength in each. Her open-minded views in religion, however, did not carry over into politics. She first voted for Roosevelt in '36 and while thereafter she always "voted for the best candidate," that never turned out to be Republican. She loved to discuss politics but no one ever remembers her listening to views that did not agree with her own! Much to her chagrin, some of her own children now live with Republicans. [What little wisdom there is in politics, she thought, lay with the Democrats.] She was not interested in bowling, hunting, fishing, gardening, birdwatching, cooking, sewing, card playing and other normal activities that people in other obituaries were interested in. As a single mother long before it became fashionable, "Ma" was intensely devoted to her children. She centered her life around them and was an integral part of their lives to the very end. She took a motherly, Irish pride in each of them and in their children. Not thinking of herself as having reached the "grandma" stage in life when her grandchildren began arriving, she became "Gamie" to all of them. They in turn loved her dearly as the absolutely unique grandmother she was. While she will be missed greatly by all who knew her, the best of Gamie lives on in her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, now mixed with a healthy dosage of Dutch, German and Polish blood. Joan always said that one of the benefits of being a Post-Crescent employee was that you got a free obituary. So she wanted hers to be a long as possible! To be continued... The family wishes to thank the staff at Manorcare who were so attentive to the needs of Joan and her family in the last week of her life. WICHMANN FUNERAL HOME 537 N. Superior Street Appleton 739-1231 David L. Gorski Northeast Minneapolis Minnesota Age 60, died March 29, 2000, after a six-year battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Donna (Salmon); children, Michael Joseph (Peng Yean), Lisa Marie (Gary Deming), Alan David (Paula), and Linda Kathleen (Tom Hupf); beloved grandchildren, Christopher and Eric Hupf, Graham and Lauren Deming, and Drew, Sydney and Taylor Gorski; a sister, Jean Drabeczak (Ed); and brothers, Michael (Donna) and Daniel. David was retired police chief of the Appleton Police Department from 1977-1995. He served as director of Police and Security for Harvard University from 1975-1977. Public Safety Director for Golden Valley, Minnesota, from 1973-1975. A Memorial Service will be scheduled at a later date in Appleton. Cremation Society of Minnesota Minneapolis, Minnesota 612-825-2435 Suzette Leila Knorr Jagerson Baton Rouge, Louisiana A loving mother and grandmother, she passed away Thursday morning, March 23, 2000, at Ollie Steele Burden Manor in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was a native of Menasha, Wisconsin, born on July 22, 1920. She was a direct sales assistant at Marathon Corporation in Menasha for 12 years. Her 35 years of volunteer service included: the American Red Cross Gray Lady and Service to Military Families program, YMCA, YWCA, and Heart Fund. Past president of the Bella Vista Women's Club in 1979 and 1982, former member of Bella Vista 18-hole Golf Association and Bella Vista No. 1 and No. 2 bowling leagues, former Deacon and Elder of Bella Vista Community Church. Charter member of the Northwest Arkansas Wisconsin Club, serving as president, membership, communications and publicity person. Survived by a son and daughter-in-law, John Stuart Jagerson and Barbara Schneider Jagerson, Wausau; daughter and son-in-law, Jan Susan Jagerson Walton and Jim Walton, Lakeland, Minnesota; daughter and son-in-law, Jean Shelley Jagerson Kneiling and David Kneiling, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; two grandchildren, Sarah Alexandra Kneiling and Eric Christopher Kneiling, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; sister, Ruth Knorr DeKoch, Appleton; nieces and nephews. Preceded in death by her husband, John "Jiggs" George Jagerson; son, Jay Steven Jagerson; brothers, Harvey Knorr, Leroy "Bud" Knorr, John Knorr; and sister, Vivian Knorr Kruger. A private service will be held in Neenah, Wisconsin. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Northwest Arkansas Radiation Therapy Institute, the Arkansas Kidney Foundation or a charity of your choice in her name. To her many friends in the Neenah/Menasha, Wausau/Rothschild and Bella Vista areas, and her special friend, Margaret Fisher, Neenah, know that she appreciated and loved you all. Frederick F. "Fritz" Krause Passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, March 18, 2000, in Palm Harbor, Florida, at the age of 82. Fritz was born October 28, 1917, in New London, the son of the late Fred and Angeline (Dengel) Krause. On October 14, 1942, he married Lola Patton. Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Lola; six children, Kay (Jim) Nys, Green Bay; Stephen Krause, Antigo; Bonnie (Jim) St. Louis, Eagle River; Barb (Tom) Van Oss, Suamico; David (Mary) Krause, Burlington; Jennifer (Doug) Dittman, Palm Harbor, Florida; ten grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; and a sister, Eileen Roloff, Milwaukee. He was preceded in death by his brother, Robert, and a sister, Winefred Kische. Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Saturday, April 8, 2000, at Most Precious Blood Catholic Church in New London at 10 a.m. Erwin M. Kuks Wild Rose Formerly of Milwaukee, age 86, died Friday, March 31, 2000. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday evening, April 5 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Wautoma. Friends may call from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday only at the church. Ruminski Funeral Home Highway 21, Redgranite 920-566-2313 Serving the Family Ray E. Ritschke Waupaca Age 85, died at his home on Saturday, April 1, 2000. He was born on August 5, 1914, in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, the son of the late Ernst and Johanna (Torkarski) Ritschke. On October 19, 1940, he married Hilda Bartel at St. John Lutheran Church in East Bloomfield. Ray was a member of St. John Lutheran Church in East Bloomfield. He owned Ritschke's Boat Landing in Orihula from 1933-1978. He also worked in construction for Meyer Corp. for 18 years. Ray served his country in the U.S. Army from 1942-1945. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in New London and enjoyed hunting and fishing. Survivors include his wife, Hilda; a son, Russell (Monica), Neenah, and three grandchildren, Erica, Jessica and Amy. Ray was preceded in death by a son, Gene. Funeral services will be held on Monday, April 3, 2000, at 11 a.m. at St. John Lutheran Church in East Bloomfield. The Reverend Gerhard Schapekahm will officiate. Burial will be at the Oakwood Cemetery in Weyauwega. Friends may call at the Lewin Funeral Home, Fremont, on Sunday (TODAY) from 1 to 5 p.m. and on Monday from 8 to 9 a.m. and at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of service. A memorial fund has been established for St. John Lutheran Church. Charles F. Roberts Waupaca Age 74, passed away Friday March 31, 2000, at Riverside Medical Center in Waupaca. He was born on May 16, 1925, in Boscobel, Wisconsin, son of the late Milton and Jane (Riley) Roberts. He married Emogene Bolint on August 15, 1947, in Viola, Wisconsin. Charles was a dairy farmer for most of his life. Following retirement, Charles worked as a field representative for Star Dairy in Weyauwega for over 10 years. He served in the United States Army during World War II. He is survived by his wife, Emogene; one daughter, Monica (John) Johnson of Fairborn, Ohio; one son, Anthony (Alice) of Kendall, Wisconsin; six grandchildren, Phillip Roberts, Shante Roberts, Chara Roberts, Joeleen Roberts, Taneha Loy and Spencer Loy; brother, Albert (Margaret) Roberts of Gays Mills, Wisconsin, and three sisters, Jane Fralick of Boscobel, Myrtle Freymiller of Boscobel, and Shirley Neulun of Oregon, Wisconsin. He was preceded in death by two brothers, Hayman and Keith Roberts. Memorial Services will be held at Waupaca Christian Church on Wednesday, April 5, 2000, at 1 p.m. The Reverend Carl Ferguson will officiate. A memorial visitation will be held at the church on Tuesday, April 4, 2000, from 6-8 p.m. and 1 hour prior to the service on Wednesday. Interment of remains will be in the Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery in King, Wisconsin. HOLLY FUNERAL HOME Waupaca 715-258-4020