Marlene Schaefer

Marlene Mary Schaefer (nee Backhaus), 86, of Cedarburg, passed away Saturday April 9, 2022, surrounded by her children at Ivy Manor Building 1 of West Bend.

  Marlene was born in New Fane, Wis., on Oct. 13, 1935, the daughter of the late George Backhaus and Francis (Staehler) Schneider and stepfather Theodore Schneider.

The family moved to the farm in St. Michaels, Wis. 

On Sept. 11, 1954, Marlene married Charles A. Schaefer of South Byron, the son of the late Leo and Ann (Kueckler) Schaefer, at St. Michaels Catholic Church, St. Michaels. The couple made their home in West Bend until moving to Cedarburg in July of 1962.

  Marlene retired from AC Delco of Oak Creek, Wis., in October 2000, as a line person. She held many waitressing jobs in Cedarburg at Jerry’s Restaurant, The Victorian Restaurant and The Edge of Town and bartending at Circle B.  

She had been a member of St. Francis Borgia Church since 1962.  She was a member of the West Bend Moose Lodge 1398 and Pork Producers Club of Washington, Ozaukee and Sheboygan County.

  Marlene enjoyed Green Bay Packers football, Milwaukee Brewers baseball, fishing, bus trips to the Oneida Casino, bingo and playing cards, especially sheepshead.

  Marlene will be deeply missed by her children Joan (Neil) Swanson of Mesa, Ariz., Julie (Steven) Boyea of Port Washington, Mark (Ellen) Schaefer of West Bend, Margaret (David) Becker of Fredonia and Jane (Robert) Falk and Janet (Daniel) Mueller, both of West Bend; 11 grandchildren, Steven (Jennifer) Swanson of West Bend, Stephanie (Tony) Quintana of Gilbert, Ariz., Kelly Boyea of Chicago, Ill., Melissa (Rick) Roden and Mark Schaefer (special friend Emily Rose Faber), both of West Bend, Jacqueline (David) Papenfuss of Adell, Thomas Becker (special friend Tanya Petersons) of Cascade, Brittany Falk (special friend Adam Ramel), John (Tiffany) Falk and Cindy (Joshua) Lovato, all of West Bend, and Jacob (Emma) Mueller of Cleveland; 12 great-grandchildren, Cade Edgmon (son of Stephanie Quintana) of Gilbert, Ariz., Cole, Vale and Tripp Swanson and Kendra, Brooke and Rhen Roden of West Bend, David and Jackson Papenfuss of Adell, Michael Falk and Pieper Falk of West Bend and Isaiah Mueller of Cleveland; two sisters-in-law, Geraldine Feucht and Kathy (Curtis) Rauch of Le Roy; brother-in-law James Zautner of West Bend; many nieces; nephews; other relatives; and friends.

  Marlene was preceded in death by her husband Charles; daughter Mary Ann; brothers, sister and sisters-in-law Harold (Freda) Backhaus, Gerald (Shirley) Backhaus and Joanne (nee Backhaus) Zautner; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-laws Ervin (Sylvia) Schaefer, Eugene (Mary) Schaefer, Joseph Feucht and Earl, Myrtle, Gerald, Corrine and Stewart Schaefer; aunts; uncles; nieces; and nephews.

A celebration of life for Marlene will take place on Tuesday, April 19, 2022, at Mueller Funeral Home & Crematory, 979 N. Green Bay Rd., Grafton, Wis., at 5 p.m., with visitation at the funeral home from 3 to 4:45 p.m.

Her final resting place will be at St. Francis Borgia Cemetery, Pioneer Road, just west of Wauwatosa Road in Mequon, Wis.

A special thank you to Ivy Manor House #1 caretakers Dr. Marsha and nurse Holly, Preceptor Home Health and Hospice of Germantown Team and Flip-N-Do Nancy Czuppa for the positive, kind, loving care they all gave to Marlene the last 10 months.  

For online condolences, please visit www.muellerfuneralhome.com.