Obituaries

Mary Kay Jacobs Piatt

Born on November 22, 1931, and passed away peacefully surrounded by her children on June 26, 2022 at the age of 90. She is preceded in death by her loving husband Lynton of 66 years, and 7 of the 9 children of Lawrence and Anna Jacobs of Nezperce, Idaho. She is survived by her 100-year-old sister Bernice Lanza, her children: Pam (Larry) Hansen, Julie (Dick) Enerson, Tim (Heidi) Piatt, Darcie (Richard) Payne, Grandchildren: Breanna, Cassandra (Seth), Justin, Chelsey, Kajsa (Dane), Olivia, Malina, Seth (Blanca) and great-grandchildren Quinn, Tristan, and Nora.

Mary Kay and Lyn resided in Whitewater, Wisconsin for 47 years, and moved to the Twin Cities for their final years to be closer to many family members. She worked at the UW-Whitewater Health Center as an administrative assistant soon after moving to Whitewater until her retirement in 1993.

She was always within arm’s reach of a book, crossword puzzle, knitting or handiwork, and enjoyed painting and doing ceramics. Mary Kay was smart, wise, resourceful, strong, and always had a “can-do” attitude while being content with staying out of the limelight. She was passionate about politics and worked for many years as an election judge and campaigned for her favorite candidates.

She had a great sense of humor, a beautiful smile, was willing to help others – particularly the underdog, and loved and served her family well. We will miss her greatly.

We want to thank the staff at Saint Therese of New Hope, Minnesota for their loving care during these past 3 years.

Notice of burial arrangements and memorial for both Mary Kay and Lynton Piatt will be determined at a future date. 

Dolores M. Feltych, age 80, of Janesville, passed away on Wednesday, June 29, 2022 at the Cedar Crest Assisted Living Facility.  A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on JULY 10, 2022; at SCHNEIDER FUNERAL HOME; with visitation from 1 p.m. until time of service. SCHNEIDER FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORY is assisting her family.

Theresa Velda (Simon) Shinners of Madison, Wisconsin, died on June 16, 2022, at the age of 90.

Theresa was born on January 22, 1932, in Gueydan, Louisiana. She was the fourth of nine children of an Acadian-French (Cajun) family. Her parents, Alexandre and Odeide (nee Leblanc) Simon were cotton sharecroppers in southern Louisiana.

Theresa was very proud of her Cajun heritage and was a lifelong student of its language, food, music, and traditions. In search of the linguistic roots of her ancestors, she traveled to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, Canada, and the Poitou Region of western France.

Theresa married Carl W. Shinners in 1954 and moved with her family to Whitewater, WI in 1965. In 1976, she earned a bachelor’s degree from UW-Whitewater in Education and taught French and Spanish for many years at Delavan-Darien High School.

Theresa was an active part of the Whitewater university community and St. Patrick Catholic Church. She volunteered with Catholic Services, using her language skills to serve the Hispanic community in Palmyra, WI.

After her retirement, she moved to Madison where she continued her teaching vocation as a substitute teacher in the public schools. She was a long-time and dedicated volunteer of the Friends of Sequoya Library; customers will remember her from the monthly book sales. She also was an active member of area French-speaking clubs.

Theresa was an eager consumer of world and U.S. political news. She wanted very much to vote in the upcoming November 2022 elections. In her memory, her family encourages friends and family to exercise their precious right to vote in every election.

Theresa is survived by her children Catherine Shinners of Palo Alto, CA, Kevin Shinners (Amy) of Madison, and Theresa Shinners-Gray (Greg) of New Auburn, WI, seven grandchildren and four great grandchildren, and three sisters, Genevieve (Jean) Dartez, San Diego, CA, Mary David, Jennings, LA, and Ethelyn Adams, Morse, LA.

A service of remembrance will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Friends of Sequoya Library and sent to Sequoya Library, 4340 Tokay Blvd, Madison, WI 53711. Please share your memories at www.cressfuneralservice.com

Cress Funeral & Cremation Service, 3610 Speedway Road, Madison, (608) 238-3434

Nancy F. Flanders, 90, of Whitewater, passed away Sunday, June 26, 2022, at Agrace Hospice in Janesville.  

She was born March 21, 1932, the daughter of Leslie and Dorothy (Smith) Forsyth. She was a graduate of Monmouth College majoring in Biology. She was a lifelong member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority. On October 2, 1954, she married Thomas “Tom” Flanders, in her hometown of Des Moines, Iowa.  

Nancy was a master gardener, stained glass artist, and amateur ornithologist. She had a great love of reading from early childhood and attended a book club at Irvin Young Library in Whitewater. She and Tom traveled the world for humanitarian causes and sailed to many ports of call in Lake Michigan. 

Nancy is survived by her daughters, Roberta Flanders, Leslie (Richard) Balcerak, and Stacy (Harold) Dunbar; two granddaughters, Kelly and Jillian Dunbar; brother, George Allen (Ardith) Forsyth; and two Goddaughters, Emily and Laura Wheeler. She is further survived by nieces and nephews as well as many friends. 

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Tom Flanders; an infant son; sister, Barbara (Rodney) Wichmann. 

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Irvin Young Library, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Audubon Society, or Blood:Water. 

A Celebration of Life will be held at a future time. 

Nitardy Funeral Home, Whitewater, is assisting the family.  

Randy Lou Mason Bigelow, 80, of Whitewater, passed away Monday, May 30th, 2022 surrounded by her children. Born February 19, 1942, daughter of Orrin and Hannah (Stuvengen) Mason.  Randy grew up in Whitewater, and attended the College high school from which she graduated in 1959. 

In her teens, Randy was a surprise feature in Life Magazine’s September 16, 1957 article “A Frenchman’s Look at American Women,” which sparked cards and letters from around the world to her, which she enjoyed answering.

She relished long work relationships with careers as a photo colorization artist in her 20’s, at Sherwood Forest, Past & Present and was the People Greeter at our local Walmart for over 20 years until her retirement in April of 2019.

Randy loved her Kitties, always having cats as companions. She was an avid book reader, gift shopper, and had a zest for traveling with friends from coast to coast, and doing Van Gelder bus tours to many local sites. Randy also enjoyed several Carnival cruises with her family. 

Randy was the treasurer of the Junior Women’s Club, a member of the Whitewater Federation of Women’s Clubs and a member of the Senior Choir at the First English Lutheran Church. 

She was preceded in death by her sister Barbara (1937), mother Hannah (1977), and father Orrin (1987). She is survived by her children: Donald Bigelow, Alan (Vickie) Bigelow, Becky (Christopher) Miscavige Miles. Grandchildren: Trisha Bigelow Long, Rachel (Heath) Fillebrown, Stephanie Bigelow Behnke, Thomas G Bigelow. Great-grandchildren: Colby Long, Mercedes, Lillye, Maximus and Landon Fillebrown. And former spouse: Thomas A. (Judi) Bigelow. 

Visitation will be held at the First English Lutheran Church, Whitewater from 1 – 2:30 p.m., followed by a short service and luncheon on Sunday, June 19th, until 4 p.m.

Private family burial will be Thursday the 23rd at Hillside Cemetery in Whitewater. 

Nitardy Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences can be made at www.nitardyfuneralhome.com

Mildred E. (Strunk) Stanton, age 98, passed away peacefully in her sleep at Fairhaven on June 5, 2022. She was born on July 25, 1923, in Whitewater Township to Edward and Evelyn (Viegut) Strunk. She was baptized on August 12,1923 at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Whitewater and confirmed on July 3, 1938 at First English Lutheran Church, Whitewater. Mildred graduated from Whitewater High School in 1942. On April 26, 1945, she married Dean T. Stanton, at First English Lutheran Church in Whitewater, WI. They farmed with Dean’s parents in Elkhorn, WI until 1952, when they purchased a farm in Richmond Township where they farmed until 1964. Mildred worked for the Milton School District from 1967 to 1979 as a clerk/secretary.

Mildred’s church membership was extremely important to her. She was a member of First English Lutheran Church for many years and a member of Hope Circle. She also served her church in many other capacities. She was a member of Lima Benefit Club for many years and did volunteer work for Farm Bureau, 4-H and several charities.

Mildred was very interested in family history, which was documented by her numerous scrapbooks of pictures and clippings.

She is survived by her children, Diana (Laurel) Swan, Whitewater, Connie (John) Witt, Cleveland, OH, Dennis (Eva), and Eldon (Donna), both of Whitewater. She is also survived by grandchildren: Ryan Kienbaum, Thomas (Raylene) Swan, Margo (Brian) Leone, Brian (Lindsay) Witt, Eric (Amanda) Stanton, Nicholas (Megan) Stanton, Nolan (Katie) Stanton, Paul (Stacy) Stanton and Jason Stanton and step-grandchildren Donna Abell, Mary Petersen, Sandra (Stephanie) Swan and Annette Woods. She is further survived by great-grandchildren: Logan, Cody, Brady and Riley Kienbaum, Abigail Swan, Grant and Reagan Leone, Owen, Kyle and Sawyer Witt, Dashiell, Arrietty and Clover Stanton, and Brayden, Nora, and Evelyn Stanton and several step-great- grandchildren. She is also survived by 2 sisters, Ethel Fischer of Fort Atkinson, and Shirley Grant of Batavia, Il. Her parents, husband, sister Virginia Pitt and 3 brothers-in-law preceded her in death.

Services will be held on Monday, June 13, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. at First English Lutheran Church, Whitewater, Wisconsin, with visitation beginning at 9:30 a.m. Burial will follow at the Hebron Cemetery, Hebron, Wisconsin.