Mae Jean Bahrke, 83, of the town of Belle Plaine, Shawano County, passed away peacefully on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014, at Shawano Medical Center, surrounded by her loving family. She had been a patient there for the past week.
Mae Jean was born on June 4, 1931, in Shawano, daughter of the late Edward and Elsie (Kanzenbach) Dittman. She attended St. James Lutheran Grade School and graduated from Shawano High School in 1949. Following school, she was employed at the superintendent’s office for the Shawano School District. Mae Jean left Shawano and moved to Milwaukee, where she was employed by General Electric Company. On Nov. 29, 1952, she was united in marriage to William Bahrke in Racine.
Following their marriage, the couple lived in Milwaukee for one year until Bill finished his studies at Marquette University. In 1953, the couple moved to Long Island, New York. They later moved to Kingston and Athens, Tennessee; Beaumont, Texas; Moonachie and Ramsey, New Jersey; Chicago; Kansas City, Missouri; Avon, Connecticut; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Bill had been employed as an engineer for Dravo Constructors Inc. in Pittsburgh until the last 10 years of his career, retiring in 1989. He and Mae Jean then moved to Shawano in 1990.
Mae Jean was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church. She loved to travel, working outdoors, attending garden club meetings and bowling. She very much liked to spend time with her children and grandchildren.
Mae Jean is survived by her loving husband of 62 years, William H. “Bill” Bahrke, of the town of Belle Plaine; three daughters, Joan Bahrke, of Farmington, Connecticut, Susan (Ted) Bell, of Bettendorf, Iowa, and Nancy (Christopher) Hyatt, of Glenshaw, Pennsylvania; five grandchildren, Katelyn and Jeffrey Bell, both of Iowa, and Jonathan, Andrew and Anna Hyatt, of Pennsylvania; one brother, LeRoy (Gloria) Dittman, of Salem, Oregon; and several nieces and nephews.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014, at 11 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Shawano with the Rev. Luke Ferris as celebrant. Entombment will take place at the Sacred Heart Mausoleum. Relatives and friends may call at Mickelson Funeral and Cremation Service of Shawano on Monday, Dec. 15, 2014, from 4-7 p.m. and on Tuesday at Sacred Heart Catholic Church from 10 a.m. until the hour of service.
In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorials in Mae Jean’s name to Sacred Heart Catholic Church or ThedaCare at Home Hospice.
Mickelson Funeral and Cremation Service is assisting the family with arrangements.
Online condolences may be shared at www.mickelsonfs.com.