Lena Marie Gardner (nee Besaw) received her eternal reward on Saturday, March 14, 2015, after a brief illness. She was born in the town of Red Springs on Feb. 26, 1939, to the late Bernard and Ella (Bowman) Besaw.
Lena graduated from Bowler High School in 1957. On April 23, 1960, she married Ralph Gardner, of Bowler, at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Morgan Siding. They resided in Milwaukee until 1978, when they returned to their home town. Lena worked various places throughout her adulthood, including Roller Fabrics, MasterLock and the Ella Besaw Center. She and Ralph enjoyed a social life with a love of dining out, shopping, country music and spending time with their grandchildren and great-grandchildren, always by each other’s side.
Lena was preceded in death by her two sons, Adrian (Kenny) and Brook John, eight brothers and several nephews.
She is survived by her devoted husband, Ralph; loving daughter and son-in-law, Karleen and Michael Gumm, of Plymouth; grandsons, Wayne Doxtator, Brandon (Laura) Gardner, all of Green Bay, Cody (Elise) Gumm, of Melbourne, Australia, and Devin Gumm, of Oshkosh; great-grandchildren, Precious, Nevaeh, Jada, Ethan and Adrian; as well as sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
Visitation was held Monday, March 16, from 4-7 p.m. at the Swedberg Funeral Home in Gresham. The funeral service was held Tuesday, March 17, at the Lutheran Church of the Wilderness on the Stockbridge-Munsee Reservation, Bowler, with visitation beginning at 10 a.m. and the funeral service at 11 a.m. Burial was in the church cemetery.
Ralph and Karleen wish to express sincere gratitude to the staff at the Homme Home Hospice Care Unit for their gentle touch with Lena.