Orville "Orv" Vertein
Orville "Orv" Vertein
Orville "Orv" Vertein, age 80, passed away on Thursday, July 2, 2015 at his home in North Freedom, WI.Orville, son of Walter and Florence (Voll) Vertein, was born at his maternal grandparents' home in the Township of Baraboo. He grew up on his parent's farm in the Township of Freedom, half a mile from where he was born, and attended the one room Farview School. He graduated from Baraboo High School and continued his education with correspondence courses. He was a lifelong member of Emanuel United Methodist Church.Orv met his wife, Beverly Haywood, at a high school dance and on December 11, 1954, he married his high school sweetheart. They enjoyed dancing together throughout their 60 years of marriage. They were blessed with five children.Orv loved spending time with his family and friends and could often be found at the dining room table playing cards and games with them. He especially liked teaching his grandchildren the fine art of playing Euchre, and lived by the philosophy that you can always count on your partner for a couple of tricks, especially if you only have one trump.Some of his favorite pastimes were hunting and fishing with his sons, watching his daughters play softball, and sharing the splendor of the outdoors with his grandchildren. He was an avid fan of Wisconsin sports, following the UW Badger's football and basketball teams, the Milwaukee Brewers, and of course his beloved Green Bay Packers.Throughout his life Orv was involved in many different activities and organizations. As a youth, he was a member of the Lucky M 4-H Club and the Baraboo High School FFA. He served with the 128th Infantry Regiment of the Wisconsin National Guard, was a member of the Baraboo Lodge #688 B.P.O.E. Elks, and the Baraboo Kiwanis Golden K. He was a Cub Scout Leader, served as the Village Clerk and Assessor for the Village of North Freedom, and volunteered with the North Freedom Fire Department. In addition to his community involvement, Orv worked for over 40 years as the General Manager for Twin City Forms.Orv was a creative handy man and enjoyed tinkering in his basement, doing whatever he could to help others including fixing the neighborhood children's bikes. He also had a soft spot for animals. He kept treats on hand for his favorite dogs, and never let his squirrel feeder run out of peanuts. In fact, one of his favorite things was watching the antics of the backyard squirrels.Above all, Orv was a loyal and caring family man and friend. He was fully devoted to his wife and children; and was never too busy to enjoy pillow fights, squirt gun skirmishes, or frosting Christmas cookies with his grandchildren.Orville is survived by his wife, Beverly; his daughters, Terri (Greg) Mueller, Kim (Lee) Towey, and Vicki (Gordon) Zerbel; his sons, Mark (Lee Ann) Vertein and Brian Vertein; his grandchildren, Brett Mueller, Drew and Paige Towey, Ryan (Megan) Ross, Rose and Esther Vertein; his brother, Russell (Janet) Vertein; brother-in-law, Paul Endres; sisters-in-law, Shirley Vertein, Barbara (Bob) Dolezal, and Barbara Haywood; as well as nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.He was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Phyllis Gaetzke Endres; brother, Verllyn Vertein; in-laws Bernard Haywood and Violet Miller; and brothers-in-law, Don Haywood and Donald "Bud" Gaetzke.A Memorial Service will be held at 3:00 P.M., Saturday, July 11, 2015, at Emanuel United Methodist Church, 101 14th Street, Baraboo, WI. Visitation will be held at the church from 1:00 P.M. until time of service. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorials may be made to Emanuel United Methodist Church or American Cancer Society. Online condolences may be made at www.redlinfuneralhome.com.The family would like to express their gratitude to Dr. James M. Heun, MD and Oncology staff at St. Clare Health Care Specialty Services; Dr. Thomas J. Varley, MD; Sauk County Nurses; and Agrace HospiceCare for their compassionate care of Orville. Also, thank you to friends and relatives for their support during his illness.Orville was dearly loved and will be greatly missed.