Category: Obituaries

MADISON/ ST. LOUIS, MO. – Robert C. Newman passed away on Wednesday, March 18, 2009. Robert spent his career as a professor of horticulture at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. His work included teaching, research, and extension work throughout the state. He was a recognized expert in plant identification and was often consulted to assist with weed identification. His interest in turfgrass management led to the establishment of the Noer Turfgrass Research Facility and a turfgrass professorship at the University of Wisconsin.

Arthur D. Code understood that astrophysics happened in outer space – and that was where the telescopes needed to be.

Code first made his telescope-in-space proposal in the aftermath of the Soviet Union’s Sputnik launch in 1957. The National Academy of Sciences had asked scientists what they would do if they had access to a 100-pound satellite.

“I was one of the few who proposed astronomy experiments,” Code later told The Milwaukee Journal in 1995. “Most of the other proposals suggested using a satellite to look at Earth.”

Gerhard O. Ellerkamp, age 85, of Madison, passed away on Monday, March 16, 2009. He was a cabinet maker for Ripp Kitchens, Findorff and the University of Wisconsin.

Richard S. “Dick” or “Ned” Bauhs died on Sunday, March 15, 2009. After the war, Dick became a journeyman steamfitter and worked for Hyland Hall, E and W Heating, and UW-Madison until 1988, when he retired.

Dale Stephen Amans, age 56, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, March 16, 2009. He worked at the UW Physical Plant for 23 years before retiring in 2007.

Paul Quentin Nordeng, age 74, died on Saturday, March 14, 2009. Paul was employed at UW-Madison initially maintaining hybrid computers and later operating the standards lab until his retirement in 1997.

The University of Wisconsin announced Monday that pioneering space astronomer Arthur D. Code died on March 11 after a long illness at the age of 85.

The cause of death was a long-standing pulmonary condition, according to his family.

Arthur D. Code, a scientist who elevated the field of astrophysics in many ways over his 40-plus years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, died Wednesday at the age of 85 in Madison after a long illness.

Code was a celebrated scientist who pioneered launching telescopes into space to avoid the distorting effect of Earthâ??s atmosphere.

He once said that seeing the stars from the ground was like “bird watching from the bottom of a swimming pool.”

Arthur Dodd Code, age 85, died on Wednesday, March 11, 2009. Early in his career, Professor Code held a post at the  University of Wisconsin (1950-56). He returned to the University of Wisconsin where he served as professor of astronomy, director of Washburn Observatory, and chairman of the Department of Astronomy (1958-70). At the time of his death he was the Joel Stebbins and Hilldale professor of astronomy emeritus. He was extensively involved in the national space program since the inception of NASA in 1958, founded and for many years directed the University of Wisconsin Space Astronomy Laboratory, and was principal investigator for the Wisconsin Experimental Package aboard the first Orbiting Astronomical Observatory launched Dec. 7, 1968. Throughout his career he was eager to educate the general public about space research and to teach children about astronomy, and he took pleasure in lecturing at such venues as the University of Wisconsin Space Place that he helped initiate.

Michael Walton Pfau passed away on Thursday, March 12, 2009, in Norman, Okla. after a brief illness. Dr. Pfau was a professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1993 until 2001.

MADISON – On Saturday, March 28, 2009, at 1:30 p.m. at MADISON’S LUTHER MEMORIAL CHURCH, family and friends will gather to celebrate the life and contributions of Mark Edward Musolf. Mark received his undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he played in the Marching Band, including at the 1963 Rose Bowl, and sang in campus vocal groups. He graduated from UW-Madison Law School in 1966, and was a devoted fan of UW athletics, especially football and hockey. Mark had a lifelong interest in politics and public service, including student government participation in grade school, high school and the university.

Before there were SUVs and soccer moms, there was Alma Taeuber.

Taeuber founded the Regent Soccer Club near her home in the Vilas neighborhood in 1972, when her children were young and soccer wasn’t well known in America. In doing so, Dauber brought the sport to hundreds of west side Madison children.

Taeuber, 75, died on March 3 of pneumonia and advanced Parkinson’s disease.

Taeuber was a part-time demographer at UW-Madison and a copy editor for the American Sociological Review and the journal, Demography. She studied black and white housing and educational patterns and wrote scholarly articles on desegregation and a book on racial segregation.

Dr. Catharine McClellan, an anthropologist and educator, died on March 3, 2009. In 1961 Dr. McClellan moved to the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where she was named John Bascom Professor in 1973 and became emeritus in 1983.

Erma Esser, age 65, passed away on March 5, 2009. Erma was employed at the UW-Madison as a custodian in its housing department and with the UW-Madison Extension.

Winston L. Brembeck, age 96, passed away peacefully on Saturday, March 7, 2009. Winston taught at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1946, until his retirement in 1984, as UW Professor Emeritus of the Department of Communications Arts.

Ronald William Harrington, age 72, passed away unexpectedly at his home on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. Ronald worked for more than 37 years for the University of Wisconsin Physics Department prior to his retirement in 1993.

Maryan L. (Bakken) Bertelsen has died. Maryan worked for the University of Wisconsin Department of Behavioral Disabilities from 1967 to 1978. At the University of Wisconsin she was a friend and confidant of many graduate students, who often brought her mementos from around the world.

Vivian J. (Hall) Williams, age 89, passed away peacefully at Belmont Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Madison, on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. Vivian worked as a cook at a fraternity house at the University of Wisconsin for several years, and then she was employed by the University Hospital for 18 years until she retired.

Stephen Edward Horkan, age 96, died on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. Upon graduation in 1935 with a degree in PHB, Stephen was employed in the business office of the University of Wisconsin. During his 40-year career at the University, he held the titles of chief accountant, controller, assistant vice president and budget officer, and vice president emeritus.

Lillian Lueck Wagner, age 88, died on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. Lillian was employed as an administrative assistant at UW Residence Halls and in 1950, transferred to the UW Physical Plant, retiring in 1981.

Renee Paquette Schelb of Deerfield passed away on Feb. 28, 2009. Most recently she worked at the University of Wisconsin Medical Foundation, Madison.

Mary Kuehn, age 79, died after a brief illness on Sunday, March 1, 2009. Trained as a nurse, Mary completed her career working as a psychiatric nurse at University Hospital.

Arlita B. “Molly” Draper, age 86 of Portage, passed away in her sleep on Sunday, March 1, 2009. Molly worked for the University of Wisconsin as a cook.

Carolyn Finkelstein Wilson, affectionately known as Callie, age 89, died peacefully on Friday, Feb 27, 2009. She moved to Madison in 1976, serving as librarian for University of Wisconsin Extension Women’s Education Resources and as bibliographer to the U.S. State Department’s International Women’s Year (1977) Wisconsin State Meeting. An inventive bibliographer, Callie completed her career at the University of Wisconsin Office of the Women’s Studies Librarian, as editor for 10 years of New Books on Women and Feminism.

William James Drescher, age 90, died on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009. In 1958 he received a M.S. degree in geology from UW-Madison and taught graduate level hydrology courses at the UW in the late 50s and early 60s.

MADISON – John Philip “Phil” Keillor, Jr., age 71, passed away on Friday, Feb. 27, 2009, after suffering severe injuries in a fall while ice skating with his youngest grandchild….Phil earned a master’s degree in Ocean Engineering in 1973 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, making him the first coastal engineer in the state. Phil worked as a coastal engineer for the UW Sea Grant Program for 29 years before retiring in 2003.

Professor Millard W. Johnson Jr., age 81, emeritus professor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Engineering Mechanics and Department of Mathematics, passed away at HospiceCare in Fitchburg on Feb. 20, 2009. Many students and colleagues described Millard as a gentleman who cared deeply about every one of his students.

Clarence Alvin Disch, age 88, of Oregon, passed away on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009. While farming, Clarence was employed from January 1964 until retiring after 22 and a half years at UW-Madison Sellery and Ogg student residence halls as a maintenance facility worker in 1986.

Patricia A. Griffin passed away unexpectedly at her home on Friday, Feb. 13, 2009. Patty worked as a receptionist for the UW School of Music, where she had an opportunity to meet a number of prominent musicians, including the late Duke Ellington. In 1971, Patty left her position at the School of Music, and traveled all over Europe for most of a year.

Robert W. Hougas, age 90 of Monroe, formerly of Madison, died Friday, Feb. 13, 2009. He was Professor Emeritus in Genetics and Horticulture at UW-Madison, and also served as Associate Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences during his career.

Sheila Margaret Kivlin Reul, age 80, died on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin, and later worked for the college as a systems analyst.

Lucille Marie Skattum Schaber, age 95 of Madison, formerly of the Darlington and Argyle area, passed away Feb. 10, 2009. In the early 60s Lucille moved to Madison and worked for the University of Wisconsin and Methodist Hospital.

Richard Z. Kabaker, attorney, civic leader, fundraiser, brother, husband, father and friend, died on Jan. 29, 2009. Since 1972, when the family moved to Madison, Richard had spent his professional time teaching at the University of Wisconsin Law School, practicing law with private firms in Madison and working to better the community in so many ways.

Arlene Doris Rudman Davenport, age 77, died on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2009. Arlene began working for the University of Wisconsin in 1966 as an undergraduate advisor in the Department of Psychology and was employed by the university for 40 years, retiring in 2006.

Boleslaw “Bill” Uminski, passed away on Monday, Feb. 2, 2009, at the age of 85. Bill enjoyed a career with the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a police officer and following graduation from Waukesha he obtained a position with the UW-Madison as assistant safety director and retired in 1982.

Catherine Eve “Kitty” Hank passed away in the early morning hours of Saturday, Jan. 31, 2009. Kitty ran the Surgical Pathology Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin Hospital for Dr. Walter Jaeschke for more than 30 years.

A bundle of energy, a spark plug, a leader, a personality. A pillar of the community.

These were among the descriptors friends and colleagues ascribed to Alfred De Simone, a Kenosha businessman who devoted his energy to scores of causes, most notably the University of Wisconsin System.

De Simone, 90, died Tuesday at Brookside Care Center, after recent battles with pneumonia and other illnesses.

A longtime agent of the AXA Equitable Life Insurance Co., De Simone is credited as one of the founders of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, and he later served a six-year term on the governor-appointed UW System Board of Regents.

Clara Penniman, Emeritus Professor of Political Science, University of Wisconsin at Madison, died on January 30, 2009. Ms. Penniman taught political science on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin at Madison from 1953 to 1984, where she held the Oscar Rennebohm Chair for Public Administration for the last ten years.

A Memorial Service will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday February 7, 2009, at the Chapel Oakwood Apartments, 6209 Mineral Point Road.

Wilmott “Rags” Ragsdale, a war correspondent and University of Wisconsin-Madison professor who taught a generation of journalism students in the 1960s and â??70s, died last month at age 97.

Ragsdale told students to “be bold” in their reporting, said his daughter Amy Ragsdale. That same philosophy led him to London during World War II, where he covered D-Day, landing on Omaha Beach on the second day of the invasion.

Clara Penniman, 94, a ground-breaking University of Wisconsin-Madison political scientist and scholar of public finance, died Friday of pneumonia in Madison.

Penniman was the first female chairwoman of the UW-Madison political science department, serving from 1963-1966, when all the political science faculty were men. She also founded the Center for the Study of Public Policy and Administration at UW-Madison, the precursor of todayâ??s Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs.

Kim L. “Vito” Jenkins, age 59, passed away on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2009. Kim was employed with the UW Hospital for more than 16 years.

Judith Strasser, a local award-winning writer and nationally known public radio interviewer, died Thursday after a years-long battle with cancer. She was 64.

….Her writing career began in earnest in 1999 after a long career in public radio, including working as a producer and on-air interviewer for “To the Best of Our Knowledge,” a nationally syndicated weekly public radio program.

Derek James Cripps, age 80, passed away peacefully at the Scripps Memorial Clinic in San Diego, Friday, Jan. 23, 2009, after becoming ill on a cruise ship headed for Los Angeles. Dr. Cripps served as chief of dermatology at University Hospital for 30 years. He did research on sunlight sensitivity and developed the SPF rating system, commonly seen on sunscreen bottles. He also investigated the disease Porphyria.

Nonavee Frances Kuzdas, age 87 of Waterloo, passed away on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009. She was a registered nurse for Cook County and UW Hospitals for many years.

Jerome F. (Jerry) Saeman, age 92, passed away after a full life on Jan. 21, 2009. Upon retirement from FPL in 1980, Jerry was employed as an adjunct professor of chemical engineering at the University of Wisconsin. There he worked in collaboration with industry and the university on wood-related problems, initiating work on improving the manufacture of composites involving wood fibers and plastics, and starting an ongoing series of international conferences on wood fiber composites.

Robert Mayer Bolz passed away Jan. 19, 2009, in Madison from pneumonia. Bolz was active with the University of Wisconsin, serving on the board of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, University of Wisconsin Foundation, the Vilas Trust, and Boards of Visitors of the College of Engineering, Ophthalmology Department, Business School, and Max Kade Institute.

Avis H. Levin, age 83, passed away peacefully at her home on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. Avis worked in various departments on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She was especially proud of her work in the Bacteriology Department laboratories of Drs. Winston Brill and Jack Pate. She then went to work at UW Hospital in the Transplantation Service in the tissue typing lab under the watchful eyes of Dr. Folkert Belzer. She finished her career with many years spent in the State Laboratory of Hygiene until her retirement at age 65.

Jenny Alexander passed away on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2009. Jenny worked as a research associate and instructor in educational psychology at UW-Madison during the 1980s.

Jean Holmes Hansen died unexpectedly but peacefully, in her own home, on Monday, Dec. 29, 2008. Her favorite jobs involved UW students, working for the Wisconsin Student Association and the Memorial Union Committee Offices, where she got a ringside view of sixties campus politics and occasional whiffs of tear gas; and later for the School of Nursing, where she worked in student services and edited the Nursing News department newsletter.

Joseph F. O’Brien Sr., age 80, of Evansville, died on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009. Before retiring in 1997, Joe worked at UW-Madison for 15 years.

Shirley E. Johnson died peacefully Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009, at age 81. Shirley started working at the UW-Extension Library in 1956, was appointed instructor in 1957, granted tenure in 1962, and named assistant professor in 1973. She was appointed director of the UW-Extension Library Services in January 1977, and became extension historian in 1994. After 40 years of dedicated service, she retired from Extension Library in 1996 as assistant professor emerita. With the assistance of UW-Extension technical staff, she developed the impressive UW-Extension history database, www.uwex.edu/history.

Mary “Jeanne” Gourlie, age 81, died on Jan. 2, 2009. Prior to retiring in July of 1988, Jeanne served as an advisor to students for the UW-Extension in Madison.

Mary (Muehlemann) Sandridge, passed away quietly on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2008. After retiring from farming in 1963, Mary worked at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and then Firstar Bank, Madison, when she retired in 1985.

Albert “Jimmy” Brom, age 87, passed away on Christmas Eve Day, 2008. He worked for the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Van Hise building for 21 years before retiring as custodial supervisor in 1990.

Paul Joseph Grogan, age 90, died peacefully in his sleep on Friday, Dec. 26, 2008. Paul was a professor with the University of Wisconsin Engineering Extension until 1985. With others, he created the Continuing Education Unit (CEU), the international unit that tracks adult education courses taken outside university degree programs. He was also the driving force behind the development of the Extension Building on North Lake Street, and Lowell Hall, the first Extension Conference Center in Madison.

Shirley Hipke Custer, age 75, died on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2008. She was a substitute teacher in the Madison Public School District and an associate professor with the UW Extension.

Josefine Joyce, age 85 of Baraboo, formerly of Madison and Janesville, died at home on Christmas Eve, 2008. Her nursing career spanned 50 years and included private clinics, St. Mary’s Hospital, and the University Hospital in Madison, where she was a surgical nurse for both heart and kidney transplants.