Tomah Journal - Obituaries

Ethel E. Boettcher, Carl Clinton Graf, Patrick D. Graham, Margaret L. Mikolajczyk, Geraldine Sowle Schlosser, Earl David Voltz, Sr.

Ethel E. Boettcher

Ethel E. Boettcher, 86, of Camp Douglas, died Saturday, June 21, 2008 at the Serenity House in Tomah. She was born March 23, 1922 in the Township of Cutler, rural Camp Douglas, the only daughter to Homer and Myrtle (Delap) Georgeson. She was born into the family of God when she received Christ as her Savior at the age of 8. She was united in marriage to Aaron Tatu on Sept. 2, 1940. He preceded her in death on Dec. 30, 1960.

She was then united in marriage to Roland Boettcher on Jan. 18, 1964 at the Bethel Baptist Church by Rev. Ole Refsell. He preceded her in death on June 21, 2001. She worked at the Tomah Coop Elevator, as a bookkeeper from 1962-1980 and at the Camp Williams Military pay office for 6 years. Leaving the pay office, she retired to care for her ailing father.

She was a devoted and faithful member of the Bethel Baptist Church, serving as the church treasurer for 35 years.

She enjoyed baking homemade pies, breads and rolls and sharing them with family and friends. She was loving wife, mother, grandmother, aunt and friend. She will be sadly missed by those that loved her.

She is survived by two sons Richard Tatu and Dennis (Judith) Tatu all of Tomah, 7 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, a brother Elmer (Edna) Georgeson, she is further survived by nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

In addition to her parents, she is preceded in death by Aaron Tatu, Roland Boettcher, a daughter-in-law Paula Tatu, and two brothers Howard and Lester Georgeson.

Funeral services were held on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 11 a.m.. at the Bethel Baptist Church Camp Douglas. Pastor Thomas Baker will officiate.

Burial will be in the Camp Douglas Village Cemetery.

Relatives and friends called at the Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home 801 E. Monowau Street, Tomah on Tuesday, from 4: until 8 p.m. and at the church on Wednesday, from 10 a.m. until the time of the service.

Carl Clinton Graf

Carl Clinton Graf, 78, of Tomah, died Monday, June 23, 2008, at the Veterans Administration Medical Center, Tomah. He was born Oct. 4, 1929 to Carl and Margorie (Clow) Graf in Lewisville, MN. He was united in marriage to Edith Marie Lupinetti of Folansbee, WV on Dec.r 17, 1954 in Jacksonville, Florida while they were both serving in the Navy. She preceded him in death on Dec. 27, 2003. He enlisted in the Navy when he was 17 and served 10 years. He then enlisted in the Air Force and retired in 1967 after an additional 11 years. He served in Korea and in Vietnam. He worked in engineering at the VA Medical Center in Tomah until his retirement. He enjoyed fishing in Canada with his family.

He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather and brother and will be sadly missed by all those that knew and loved him.

He is survived by his four children, William (Judith) of Black River Falls, Carla MacMillian of Exeter, NH, Mark of Black River Falls, and Sheila (Jeffrey) Carlson of Stoneham, MA, six grandchildren, Hunter Graf, Ian, Justin, and Elsie MacMillan and Gavin and Carly Carlson, 4 great grandchildren, his brother Richard (Rosemary) of Saint Paul Park, MN, nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents and his wife Edith.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Monday, June 30, 2008, 11 a.m.. at St. Mary Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, 303 W. Monroe Street, Tomah. The Very Reverend Steven J. Kachel will officiate. Burial with military rites by Curtiss-McNutt V.F.W. Post 1382 will be in Oak Grove Memorial Gardens, Tomah.

Relatives and friends are invited to call Monday at the church from 10 a.m. until the time of the service.

The family would like to invite all friends of Carl over to his house on Monday at 3 p.m. for a time of sharing stories of Carl and celebrating his life.

The Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Patrick D. Graham

Patrick “Pat” D. Graham, 64, of Tomah, died Sunday, June 22, 2008, at St. Mary’s Hospital in Rochester, MN. He was born June 6, 1944, to Francis and Theressa (Snyder) Graham in Tomah. He was united in marriage to Patricia Sonnenburg on July 8, 1967, at St. Mary Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, in Tomah. He was a U.S. Army veteran stationed in Germany during the Vietnam War. He was a member of the Grassman-Sowle-Larsen-Senz American Legion Post # 201 of Tomah. He worked for Clark Oil Company, Kwik Trip, Inc. and later for Oil Equipment as a maintenance and installation manager. Pat was known as “everyone’s handyman”. He was always willing to give a helping hand when something needed to be fixed, repaired or replaced. He took great pride in helping his daughter and son-in-law build their home. He was a loving grandfather and enjoyed spending time taking the grandkids to their school activities, ball games, track meets, and music events. He also enjoyed the trips to the horse races with his sisters, spending his summers camping with friends and family, volunteering at the ACT theatre and many afternoons he could be found helping out at Don’s Auto. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, uncle and friend. He will be sadly missed by all those who knew and loved him.

He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Patty; a daughter, Rhonda (Brad) Culpitt of Tomah; a son, Robert of Portland, OR; three grandchildren, Tayler, Shelby, and Wyatt Westpfahl, all of Tomah; four brothers, Francis “Jigger” (Patricia) Graham of McGregor, TX, Lawrence (Helen) of Montclair, NJ, Robert (Donna) of Rockford, IL, and Michael (Jean) Graham of Wilmington, NC; two sisters, Mary Jansen of Racine and Ellen Graham-Knight of Tomah; six sisters-in-law, Dorla (Miles) Guthrie and Lonna Gamerdinger, both of Tomah, Betty Phillips of Hartford, Carolyn (Rick) Abel of Sullivan, Brenda Sonnenburg of Tomah and Merece (Tom) Mueller of Milwaukee, many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; a sister, Maxine Krenn; a brother, Duane; three brothers-in-law, Ralph Jansen, Edward Krenn and Robert Sonnenburg; a sister-in-law, Rosemary Sonnenburg; and his father and mother-in-law, Elmer and Ruth Sonnenburg.

Funeral services will be held Friday, June 27, at 11 a.m. at St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, 525 Superior Ave., Tomah. Pastor Donald R. Buch will officiate. Burial with military rites by Grassman-Sowle-Larsen-Senz American Legion Post #201 will be in Oak Grove Cemetery, Tomah.

Relatives and friends are invited to call at the Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home, 801 E. Monowau St., on Thursday from 4 pm. until 8 p.m. and at the church on Friday from 10 a.m. until the time of the service.

Margaret L. Mikolajczyk

Margaret L. Mikolajczyk, 86 of Tomah, died Wednesday, June 25, 2008 at the Tomah Health Care Center. She was born October 5, 1920 to Fred and Anna (Umback) Crawford in the town of Byron. She was united in marriage to Duane Duncan in 1940. She later married Carl Mikolajczyk in Tomah at the First United Methodist Church where she has since been a longtime faithful member. She work for some time at Fort McCoy in the food service department. She enjoyed cooking and entertaining for family and friends. She was a loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt and friend.

She is survived by 2 sons, Wayne (Delia) Duncan of Warrens and Ron (Carol) Duncan of Tomah, a daughter, Crystal (Donald) Ashton of Green Bay, a step-son, Gary (June) Mikolajczyk of Milwaukee, 7 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, a brother Fred (Joanne) Crawford of Sparta, 3 sisters, Birdie McCaul of Stoughton, Mona Gross of Ranchester, WA, Irene Blomberg of Port Angeles, WA, nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

She is preceded in death by her parents, her husbands Duane and Carl, 2 sisters Violet Peak and Eula Delap, 5 brothers Roland, Bill, Bernard, Alex and an infant brother.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, June 28, 2008, 11 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 1105 Butts Ave., Tomah. Pastor William F. Swan will officiate. Burial will be in Wood Cemetery, in the town of Byron. Relatives and friends are invited to call at the First United Methodist Church on Saturday from 10 a.m. until time of the service.

The Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home is assisting the family with the arrangements.

Geraldine Sowle Schlosser

Geraldine Sowle Schlosser, age 87, of Wauwatosa, WI formerly of Tomah, WI passed away on Saturday, June 21, 2008, in Milwaukee, WI. She was born on April 27, 1921,the youngest child of Claude and Luetta (Scott) Sowle in Tomah, WI. She grew up in Tomah, where she graduated from high school in 1938. She then attended college at Milwaukee State Teacher’s College (now University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee), where she majored in music. In 1943 she received a degree in anthropology from the University of Wisconsin n Madison. The patriot fervor of wartime led her to enlist in the WAAC, where she became a radio mechanic. Most of the years from 1943-1945 were spent at Midland Army Air Base in Texas.

For a short time after her discharge, she worked in Oklahoma City for Braniff Airlines, and then returned to Madison and the University of Wisconsin for a year of graduate study in Physical Anthropology. It was during that year that she met Jim Schlosser and they were married at St. Robert’s Rectory in Shorewood on July 12, 1947. They moved to Milwaukee where Jim was employed by WTMJ in the News Department.

She stayed busy raising her children and was very active in their lives and the community. She was a volunteer in the League of Women Voters and Women’s Society of Aldersgate Methodist church. She also was a Girl Scout leader for her daughter Chris’ troop from Brownies through their senior year.

She went back to school part time in 1964, and went to work at the Milwaukee Public Library in 1966. Following the birth of her fourth child, she received her Master’s degree in Library Science from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1968.

In 1975, Gerry became interested in genealogy. Since that time, tracing her ancestors and her husband’s, as well as helping others, has become her major interest. She joined the Soule Kindred in 1976 and became editor of their quarterly newsletter in 1982. She was a member of several genealogical and family societies throughout the country.

In 1985, Gerry and Jim moved to the Tomah area. She became active in the Monroe-Juneau-Jackson Genealogical Workshop, Monroe County Historical Society, First United Methodist Church and the Shakespeare Club.

Geraldine is survived by her loving husband, Jim of 61 years and also by her children, Dan (Connie) Schlosser, Ken (Tina) Schlosser, Chris Schlosser and Steve (Colleen) Schlosser. Further survived by her nephew, Ted “Scott” Roeder, other relatives and friends.

Funeral services will be held on Thursday, June 26, 2008, 11:00 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Tomah, WI. Pastor William Swan will officiate. Burial will follow in the Mount Vernon Cemetery in Tomah, WI. Family and friends are invited for visitation from 10:00 a.m. until the time of service at the church on Thursday. The Torkelson Funeral Home in Tomah, WI is assisting the family with arrangements. Memorials may be given to the Wisconsin Historical Society. Online condolences may be offered at www.torkelsonfuneralhome.com.

Earl David Voltz, Sr.

Earl David Voltz, Sr., age 72 of Elizabethtown, KY, formerly of Necedah, died Tuesday, June 24, 2008, at the Hardin Memorial Hospital in Elizabethtown.

Mr. Voltz as a member of the Church of God in Dennis, MS and an army veteran

He was born and raised in Necedah. He worked for American Motors in Kenosha, the Necedah Pallet Factory, and as a self-employed carpenter in Wisconsin, Kentucky, and Mississippi. Additionally, he had been a Pentecostal evangelist.

He enjoyed hunting, fishing, cars, reading the Bible, and his recently renewed passion for gun collecting and storytelling to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 52 years, Sarah Voltz, who died on March 1, 2008; a son, Jeffrey Alan Voltz; infant twins, Earl and Barbara Voltz, his mother, Ethel Voltz; his father, Earl D. Voltz, Sr.; a sister, Bonnie Westrich; and brothers, Edward and Donald Voltz.

Survivors include four daughters: Sally Bourgeault and his husband, Gary, of Elizabethtown, KY; Teresa Bosio and her husband, John, of Franklin, NC; Kimberly Handy and her husband, Roy, of Springfield, MO; Hope Skripsky and her husband, James, of Meadowlands, MN; three sons: John D. Voltz and his wife, Cindy, of Hodgenville, KY; Earl D. Voltz, Jr., and his wife, Donna, of Cecilia, KY; Thomas C. Voltz of Elizabethtown, KY; two sisters: Margie Marceau of Alabama; Harriet Crawford and her husband, Walter, of Necedah; 20 grandchildren, and 4 great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held at 1:30 p.m., Friday, June 27, 2008, at the Bennett-Bertram Funeral Home in Hodgenville with the Rev. Johnie Larimore and Rev. Richard Binkley officiating. Burial will follow in the White Mills Cemetery.

Visitation will begin after 11:30 a.m. Thursday and after 8 a.m. Friday at the funeral home. Condolences may also be made online at www.bennett-bertram.com..