.After 90 years of life, Margaret (Otradovec) Ehlinger, mother of ten, grandmother of 26, great-grandmother of 19 and friend and inspiration to many, died at home surrounded by her loving family on March 26, 2005. Born in Suring, Wis., to immigrant parents, Margaret was raised in Oconto County and was a resident of Preble and Green Bay from 1945 to the present. Educated at Suring High School, Oconto Falls Normal School and Milwaukee Downer College, Margaret taught school in Oconto County for six years. She married Jerome Ehlinger on May 29, 1940 and they modeled love and commitment for 65 years. Although raising a family took her out of the formal classroom, she remained a teacher all of her life and never stopped questioning life’s mysteries and challenging herself and others to be better stewards of God’s creation. Through her many volunteer activities, including Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, 4-H, St. Philip’s Altar Society, Red Cross and many others she helped instill in her family the value of using one’s talents and skills to serve the community. After her children entered school, she worked at the De Pere Yarn Shoppe and North Trails Clothing where she also used her teaching, sewing and knitting skills.
Margaret was a lifelong learner who read whenever time permitted and began using the computer and internet at age 80. With her husband, she attended 26 Elder Hostels throughout the world well into her mid 80s. She was a member of St. Philip’s Parish from its inception. She was a breast cancer survivor since 1961 who lived a full and productive life. She will be particularly remembered for giving her family “a love of learning and music, a thirst for knowledge and hopefully, a love of God.”
She is survived by Jerome, her husband of 65 years; her children, Ralph (Mary), Hubertus, Wis.; William (Kay), Watertown, Wis.; Edward (Sally), Minneapolis, Minn.; Randy Schenkat (Jeanne Ehlinger, dec.), Winona, Minn.; Thomas (Anne Peek), Bloomington, Minn.; Mary (Mark Silverberg), New York, N.Y.; Carol Ritter (Tom), Ruxton, Md.; Timothy (Kathy), Wauwautosa, Wis.; Joseph (Suzanne Jurva), Thousand Oaks, Calif.; Rebecca Ibach (Mark), Sun Prairie, Wis.; 26 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren; and numerous other friends and admirers.
Margaret was preceded in death by parents, Anton and Margaret (Müller) Otradovec and nine older brothers and sisters, daughter, Jeanne and numerous other relatives and friends.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30, at Proko-Wall Funeral Home, 1630 E. Mason St., Green Bay, Wis., and at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday morning at St. Philip’s Church. Mass in celebration of the life of Margaret Ehlinger will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 31, at St. Philip Church, 312 Victoria St., Green Bay. Interment will be at the Allouez Cemetery at 2:45 p.m. on Thursday, March 31. Online condolences may be expressed @ prokowall.com/obit.
Memorials to the Margaret and Jerome Ehlinger Educational Fund at St. Philip’s School, 312 Victoria, Green Bay, WI 54302.