Fourth Generation

83. Leola Gladys NEITZEL was born on 12 January 1929 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^1,97,145 She appeared in the census in 1930 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.³⁴ She appeared in the census in 1940 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.⁴³ Leola graduated in 1946 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.²⁵³ from Tomah High School.

Leola Gladys NEITZEL and Thomas LeRoy "Tom" KEENE were married on 14 March 1949 in West Allis, Milwaukee County, WI.^145,254 at Nain Evangelical Lutheran Church. Their attendants were Vern and Bernice Griggs. Thomas LeRoy "Tom" KEENE, son of Richard Gustav KEENE and Gilma Marian SUTHERLAND, was born on 15 July 1927 in Sparta, Sparta Township, Monroe County, WI.^97,145 He appeared in the census in 1930 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.³⁴ He graduated in 1945 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^113,255 from Tomah High School. After about 1950 Tom was a President of Keene's Transfer, after his father's retirement, in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI. He died on 1 January 2012 at the age of 84 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.

Obituary Notes: "Thomas L. Keene, 84, of Tomah, passed away Sunday, Jan. 1, 2012, at the Serenity House.

He was the oldest son of Richard and Gilma (Sutherland) Keene. He was born in Sparta July 15, 1927. He graduated from Tomah High School with the class of 1945.

Tom joined the U.S. Navy in 1945 and was honorably discharged in 1946. He then worked as a truck driver for his father at Keene’s Transfer Inc. He owned and operated Keene’s Sinclair station in Tomah for a few years until returning to Keene’s Transfer, where he served as president of both Keene’s Transfer and McMullen Transfer for more than 30 years.

Tom married Leola (Neitzel), daughter of Fred and Bertha (Mails) Neitzel, on March 14, 1949, at Nain Lutheran Church in Milwaukee.

Tom was a member of the American Legion for more than 50 years, La Societe’Des 40 Hommes Et 8 Voiture 804, Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association, Wisconsin Movers Association, where he served on the board of directors, a former member of the Tomah Lions Club and a corporate member of Tomah Memorial Hospital Inc. He was a proud member of the Tomah Volunteer Fire Department for 27 years, retiring in 1986.

He was a member of St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church. He enjoyed traveling, playing cards and working on his lawn in Tomah and at the cabin he and Leola had in Warrens near their daughter’s home.

He is survived by Leola, his wife of 62 years; his sons, Kerry (Karon), Ronald (Debra) and Jeff (Mary Petersen), all of Tomah; his daughter, Vicki (Robert) Nemitz of Warrens; six grandchildren, Kim Keene (Chad Lambert), Chris (Julie) Keene and Samantha Keene, all of Tomah, Nicole (Keith) Giroux of Newport News, Va., and Amy (Nathan) Gebhardt and Adam (Sandy) Nemitz, both of Warrens; one stepgrandchild, Jamie (Rebecca) Knutson of Tomah; four great-grandchildren, Calvin Keene, Zoey Dvorak, Addison Lambert and Myla Nemitz; four step
great-grandchildren, Audrey, Amber and Paige Knutson and Dillon Hedding. He is further survived by two brothers, Jerry (Kathryn Arneson) and Robert (Joanne) Keene, all of Tomah.

He was predeceased by his parents; stepgrandchild Robert Knutson; sisters-in-law, Margaret Keene and Marian Neitzel; and brother-in-law, Harold Neitzel.

Memorials may be given to St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tomah or Hospice Touch.
A funeral service will be held on Thursday (today), Jan. 5, 2012, at 11 a.m. at St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, 525 Superior Ave. with Pastor Donald Buch officiating. Burial will be in Oak Grove Cemetery, Tomah, with military honors. Relatives and friends called at the Sonnenburg Family Funeral Home, 801 E. Monowau St. Tomah, on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2012, from 4-7 p.m. and at the church on Thursday from 10 a.m. until the time of the service."

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Leola Gladys NEITZEL and Thomas LeRoy "Tom" KEENE had the following children: