Susan Jane Krejchik

PORTAGE  /  TOWNSHIP OF CALEDONIA  --   Susan Jane Krejchik, age 59, of Caledonia Township, lost her courageous battle with breast cancer on Saturday, September 18, 2010 at her home, with her loving family by her side.

Sue was born on August 21, 1951, in Portage, the daughter of Leo Paul Blau and Charlotte Elaine Smith Blau.  She attended St. Mary Grade School and graduated from Portage High School in 1969.  On July 25, 1970, Sue was married to her best friend, Steve Krejchik at St. Mary Catholic Church in Portage.  She did interior design/wallpapering for over 18 years, and then had worked at Eulberg’s Mens Store until the store closed.  Sue loved planning parties, which always included cooking and playing cards.  She loved landscaping, with all her perennials, water fountain, pond, rocks and statues.  In her garden she was able to weed and enjoy it until her last days.  She loved crafting with her granddaughter and her sisters, making mittens for the last few years gave her great enjoyment.  Sue was a member of St. Mary Catholic Church in Portage.

She is survived by her husband, Steve;  her son, Ken (Jen) Krejchik, Portage, and their children, Crystal, Kevin and Jacob;  her daughter, Karla (Mark) Atkinson, Portage, and their children, Spencer and Brooke;  her father, Leo Blau, Township of Caledonia;  her mother, Charlotte Blau, Montello;  two brothers, Robert (Cindy) Blau, Portage, and Thomas Blau, Edgerton, WI;  four sisters, Catherine (Randall) Balliet, Appleton, Janet (John) DiGuiseppi, Rockford, IL, Linda Cramer, Anna Maria Island, FL, Connie (Bruce) Lamprech, Onalaska;  her sisters-in-law, Marilyn (Roger) Dettmann, Waunakee, Madelyn (Vern) Ramsey, Cumberland, IN, and Beverly Klingbeil, Waunakee;  her special friend and Godmother, Esther Staudenmayer, Portage;  aunts, uncles, cousins, and many special friends.  She was preceded in death by her grandparents, Frank and Rose Blau, and Evelyn and Walter Koch;  her father- and mother-in-law, Edward and Alydia Krejchik;  and special friends, Helen Lillich and John Staudenmayer, her Godfather.

Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 22, 2010 at St. Mary Catholic Church in Portage, with Fr. Jim Murphy presiding.  Burial will follow in Shanks Cemetery, Township of Caledonia.  Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 21, 2010 at the Pflanz Mantey Mendrala Funeral Home in Portage, and on Wednesday at the church from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Home Health United Hospice, 1111  8th St., Baraboo, WI  53913, or the U.W. Carbone Cancer Center, Attn. Kelly Sitkin, 600 Highland Ave., K4/658, Madison, WI 53792.

The family would like to thank the staff at U.W. Hospital and Divine Savior Hospital, for their excellent care of Sue, and also extend a special thanks to Father Murphy and Pastor Paula.  Sue always said “Don’t let the fears of tomorrow, rob you of the joys of today”.