Story originally printed in the Tomah Journal or online at www.tomahjournal.com

Published - Friday, May 09, 2008

Obituaries for May 8

Rebecca Helgren, Edna D. Pelz, Tina Marie Remington, Mark W. Simonson,

Jeffrey D. Steele

Rebecca Helgren

Rebecca Helgren, 48, of Wilton, and formerly of Norwalk and Madison, died Tuesday, May 6, 2008, at Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse. She was born April 5, 1960, to Jerald and Beverly (Pierce) Bass in Cuba City, WI. She was united in marriage on Sept. 28, 1990, in LaFarge to Don Helgren.

Her greatest joy in life was spending time with her children. She also enjoyed babysitting for other families. She was a “second mother” to many children. Many afternoons Rebecca had a house full of children. She enjoyed spending time with family and friends, doing crafts, and arranging flowers for family weddings. She also took great pride in her gardening and lawn work.

She is survived by her children, Jason Bass, Holly and Heidi Helgren, all of Wilton; a granddaughter, Aliyah Bass of Lombard, IL; her mother, Beverly (Richard) Kiesow of DeForest; her step-mother, Doris Bass of Wisconsin Dells; two brothers, Scott (Cheryl) Bass of Lodi and Christopher (Dawn) Bass of Oregon; three sisters, Pamela (Fredrick) Amacher of Pardeeville, Tina Gibney of Monona and Cynthia Kiesow of DeForest; a step-sister, Heather Severson of Appleton; nieces and nephews, Josh, Jon, Joe, Emily and Breanna Bass, Justin and Brandon Angell, Robyn, Nicole and Kristen Retzlaff, Freddie, Jenny and Kadie Amacher, Hannah, Maddy and Megan Gibney, Summer Berg, Krystal Boden and Timmy Hole; a great-nephew, Trenton Halder; and a very special friend, April Johnson. She is further survived by many other relatives and friends.

She was preceded in death by her father, Jerald Bass, paternal grandparents Red and Florence Bass, maternal grandparents Maurice and Ella Pierce, step-grandparents Jim and Hazel Kiesow.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Friday, May 9, at 11 a.m. at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, Wilton. Rev. Richard C. Dickman will officiate. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Relatives and friends are invited to call the Smith-Nelson Funeral Home, Wilton, on Thursday from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m. and at the church on Friday from 10 a.m. until the time of the service.

Edna D. Pelz

Edna D. Pelz , 90, of Tomah, died Sunday, May 4, 2008, at the Morrow Memorial Home, Sparta. She was born Nov. 26, 1917, to Henry and Minnie (Schoot) Schmeckel in the Town of Oakdale.

She was united in marriage to Carl Pelz on Dec. 29, 1939, in Iowa. He preceded her in death Nov. 25, 1975. Edna owned and operated the Lakeview Beauty Shop for 51 years until her retirement in 1993. She was a faithful member of St. Paul Ev. Lutheran Church. Edna was a devoted wife, a loving mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and sister.

She is survived by two daughters, Dorothy (Lee) Strozinsky of Onalaska and Margaret “Peg” (Gerald) Jerdee of Andover, MN; six grandchildren, Christine Jerdee of Crystal Lake, MN, Steven Jerdee of Andover, MN, Renae (Jay) Holthaus of Woodbury, MN, Laura (Chris) Lee of Onalaska, Lynn (Terry) Stalsburg of La Crosse, and Scott Strozinsky of La Crosse; 10 great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and other relatives and friends.

She was preceded in death by her husband Carl; three sisters, Margaret “Sally” Liepelt, Luella Schamens and Florence Gnewikow.

Funeral services were held Wednesday May 7, at 1 p.m. at St. Paul Ev. Lutheran Church, 525 Superior Ave., Tomah. Pastor Donald R. Buch officiated. Burial was in Oak Grove Cemetery, Tomah.

Relatives and friends called at the church on Wednesday from 12:30 p.m. until the time of the service.

Memorials in memory of Edna Pelz may be given to St. Paul Ev. Lutheran Church and the Easter Seal Society.

The Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home, Tomah, assisted the family with the arrangements

Tina Marie Remington

Black River Falls - Tina Marie Remington, age 49, of the Town of Manchester (rural Black River Falls) died unexpectedly on Wednesday, May 7, 2008, in her home.

Tina Marie was born on April 15, 1959, in Benton Harbor, MI, to William and Barbara (Owings) Remington. She was raised in Michigan. She later lived in the Tomah area and later in rural Black River Falls.

While living in Michigan, Tina Marie was employed as a community support worker. She later enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. While serving in the Air Force, her job was to fuel the aircraft and she lived in Altus, OK.

She enjoyed pets, fishing, and outdoor activities.

Survivors include her parents, Barbara (Wilber Jinkins) Kastner, of rural Black River Falls; her significant other, Brett Deal; her step-mother, Judy Remington of Saint Joseph, MI; three sisters, Terry Morrow and Karen (Roy) Dickey, both of Saint Joseph, MI, and Cherie (Ken) Stanzcyk of Slinger; a brother, Kevin Remington of Saint Joseph, MI; several nieces, nephews, and other relatives.

Tina was preceded in death by her father, William Remington; and a brother, Gerald Tibbs.

Family and friends are invited for visitation from 5 to 7 p.m. on Monday, May 12, at the Buswell Funeral Home (www.buswellfuneralhome.com), Black River Falls.

Funeral services and burial will be held at a later date in Saint Joseph, MI.

Mark W. Simonson

Mark W. Simonson, age 52, of St. Louis Park, MN, passed away May 1, 2008, after bravely living with cancer for four years. He was born in Tomah on Oct. 14, 1955.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents; his father, Hugh M. Simonson, and his loyal canine companions Grizzly and Mogli.

He is survived by his sweetie, Maggie; his mother, Odette W. Simonson of Tomah; a daughter, Kelli, and a son, Nicholas, and their mother, Helen, of Missoula, MT; a sister, Lynne (Don) Navis, and nieces Kristen and Renee of Madison, WI.

He graduated from LaFollette High School in Madison, WI, in 1973 and went on to attend the Milwaukee School of Engineering, graduating with honors in architectural engineering. He worked for the Santa Fe and Montana Rail Link railroads. Most recently he was the project engineer for the RailWorks of Lakeville, MN. He worked on the Hiawatha light rail project ensuring track quality. His lifelong passion for trains included modeling, photographing and collecting railroad memorabilia.

In honor of his love of trains and pizza, a memorial gathering was held at Broadway Pizza, 2025 W. River Road, Minneapolis, MN, on Wednesday, May 7, from 4-9 p.m. Formal services will be held at the First United Methodist Church, 1105 Butts Ave., Thursday, May 22, at 2 p.m. with burial in Camp Douglas. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to the Soo Line Historical and Technical Society (www.sooline.org).

Washburn-McReavy Edina Chapel, 952-920-3996, is assisting the family with arrangements.

Jeffrey D. Steele

Jeffrey D. Steele, age 54, of Camp Douglas, died on Monday May 5, 2008, at his residence

He was the son of Thomas P. and Maryellen (Harrison) Steele and was born on Nov. 25, 1953, in Fond du Lac, WI. After going to New Lisbon High School, Jeff served in the U.S. Army from 1971 to 1974 and was stationed in Hanau, Germany. He was married to Peggy Calhoun from 1975 until 1982. Upon his return from service, he went to work driving truck for 3M Company in Minnesota. He later worked at the VA Hospital in Tomah and also drove a milk truck. Jeff married Linda Olson in 1982 and they divorced in 1995. In 1986 he went to work for Martin Trucking and in 1991 he went to work for Keene’s Transfer. Jeff loved to watch the wildlife at his house, watching the cranes, turkeys and deer. He also enjoyed his motorcycle, and fishing when he was younger.

He is survived by his daughters, Sara (Chad) Jensen of Tomah, Kristie (John) Barnekow of Crandon, Barbara (Kevin) Meverden of Schofield and Bridgette (Jim) Horak of Mosinee; by his brothers, Thomas Steele of Salt Lake City, UT, Robert John (Beckie) Steele of Atkins, AR, and Nick (Kia Uphoff) Diciaula of Dodgeville; his sisters, Mary Ellen (Larry) O’Brien of Madison and Sue Ann Steele of Madison, and by 11 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, a son Brian in 2001, and a brother Keith Steele and a granddaughter Hailey Jensen.

Funeral services will be held on Friday, May 9, at 1 p.m. at the Hare Funeral Home in New Lisbon with Rev. Bill Rice presiding. Burial with military honors will be in the Hustler Cemetery.

Relatives and friends may call at the Hare Funeral Home on Friday from 11 a.m. until the 1 p.m. time of service.

Online guestbook and condolences available at www.harefunerahome.com.

All stories copyright 2006 Tomah Journal and other attributed sources.