Wednesday, December 20, 2000

Obituary: Mollie Mary (Esser) Blied - Class of 1913

MADISON - Mollie Mary Blied, age 106, died Tuesday, December 19, 2000 at Meriter Hospital. One of eight children, she was born Mollie Esser in 1894 in Ashton, Wisconsin.And then, over the course of 106 years and three centuries, Mollie lived a wonderful lifeand touched many people. After graduating from Madison Central High School, Mollie took a job at UW and later worked at the Capitol in the public property office. She married Gregory Blied in 1917 and together they worked at the family business, Blied Printers in Madison. They had two children, Doris and Gregory; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. They were married until Gregory passed away in 1943. During their marriage and after his death, Mollie embraced life and all that it had to offer. Her hobbies raised countless eyebrows: bridge, bingo, poker, bowling, and choir, of course, but those are the simple ones. Hockey, one-armed bandits, Friday fish frys, Frivolous Fawn, our loving friends at Sylvan Crossings, Blackhawk, train and boat rides, travel, champagne brunches, Nitty Gritty lunches, Baileys. Las Vegas, softball in Cross Plains, Badgers football at Camp Randall, tailgating, kisses from Bucky, parking cars at Van Hise, sunsets on the Florida beach, Jacuzzis, massages, Y2K at the Orange Bowl in Miami; these are the hobbies we all loved to do with her and she loved to remember. And all but three were in the last two years. Everywhere she went, and every person she touched, left the experience better for it. And from the inner circle, and with the customary respect, “we rub your bottom.” And in the end, it seems fitting to pass along her longtime philosophy: “Keep breathing.” And that philosophy took her through three centuries, 19 presidents, the dawn of electricity, automobiles, aviation, the Internet and space; overall, a road not traveled by many. Godspeed to you, Mollie Blied, from those you touched. Thanks for the memories. A funeral Mass will be held on Friday, December 22, 2000 at ST RAPHAEL’S CATHEDRAL in Madison. Expressions of sympathy are being accepted and appreciated in Mollie’s name by the East Madison/Monona Coalition of the Aging, Inc., 4644 Cottage Grove Road, Madison, WI 53716, which works closely with elder care.

Originally published in the Wisconsin State Journal on December 20, 2000

Note: Mollie Mary Blied's class year is based on information in Tychoberahn yearbooks

Thursday, December 07, 2000

Obituary: Delores Y. (Hanson) Raimond - Class of 1947

STOUGHTON [Wisconsin] - Delores Y. Raimond, age 71, passed away unexpectedly at her home on Monday, December 4, 2000. Delores was born on April 7, 1929, in Madison, the daughter of Clarence and Dorothy (Elligan) Hanson. She was a 1947 graduate of Madison Central High School. Delores worked for many years at Josie's Three Sisters restaurant in Madison, and later at the Nazareth House in Stoughton. Survivors include two sons, John (Fran) Raimond of Las Vegas, Nevada, and Chris Raimond of Sun Prairie; two daughters, Linda (Bill) Brimmer of Lodi, and Diana Raimond of Aurora, Illinois; three grandchildren, Andrea Saari, Jamie (Tim) Heitz and Lisa Brimmer, all of Lodi; two great-grandchildren, Karlie and Ashley Saari, both of Lodi; stepfather, Angelo Catalino of Madison; and special friends, the Hestnes family, Steve, Cheri, Scott and Alice. She was preceded in death by her parents. A memorial service will be held at ST. ANN'S CATHOLIC CHURCH, 323 VanBuren St., Stoughton, on Friday, December 8, 2000, at 11:00 a.m. Father Healy will officiate. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to the Nazareth House in Stoughton. Ryan Funeral Home 2418 N. Sherman Ave. (608) 249-8257

Originally published in the Wisconsin State Journal on December 7, 2000; submitted by Michael Vahldieck (Class of 1968)

Friday, December 01, 2000

Obituary: Howard R. Fish, Jr. - Class of 1938

NEW GLARUS [Wisconsin] - Howard R. Fish Jr., age 79, passed away on Wednesday, November 29, 2000, at St. Mary's Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, after a long illness. He was born January 9, 1921, in Madison, the son of Howard R. and Alma (Roump) Fish. He married Barbara Wootton on June 1, 1944, in Madison. He graduated from Madison Central High School in 1938 and from the University of Wisconsin with a B.S. in electrical engineering in 1947. He was commissioned a second lieutenant from UW ROTC in June 1942 and served with the U.S. Army Air Corps in the Southwest Pacific. From 1942 until 1944 he was a radar and communications officer with heavy bomber squadrons. From 1944 until 1946 he served as airborne radar officer with the Air Technical Service Command. He served in the Air Force Reserve until 1966, when he retired as a lieutenant colonel. He spent his professional career as an electronics engineer at the Argonne National Laboratory of the United States Atomic Energy Commission, Argonne, Illinois. After retirement, he returned to Wisconsin. Throughout his life, Howard generously volunteered his time and talents to a number of organizations, particularly Recording for the Blind, Orland Park, Illinois, the Boy Scouts of America in Palos Heights, Illinois, and Orfordville Wisconsin, and the Community Center Foundation in Palos Park, Illinois. He was a member of the American Legion and a volunteer at the Veterans Hospital in Madison for many years. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, trapshooting and, later in life, his cottage in northern Wisconsin. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; two children, Martha (Paul Fuchs), Belleville, Wisconsin, and Robert (Claire Charney), Seattle, Washington; and two granddaughters, Lisa and Rebecca. He was preceded in death by his parents; and his sister, Doris. A memorial service with military honors will be held on Saturday, December 2, 2000, at 11:00 a.m. at NEWCOMER FUNERAL HOME in Orfordville. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to The Center, 12700 Southwest Highway, Palos Park, IL 60464.

Originally published in the Wisconsin State Journal on December 1, 2000; submitted by Michael Vahldieck (Class of 1968)