Ronald E Marsolek

Ronald E. Marsolek of Independence, Wisconsin passed away at home on June 7, 2023, at age 79. He spent his last days attending to his fish pond, doing small odd jobs for friends, admiring his wife Lorraine’s flower gardens and soaking up the beginnings of the spring and summer with his family and friends. Ronnie was born on May 8, 1944, in the township of Burnside, Wisconsin, to Leonard and Theresa (Przybilla) Marsolek. Ronnie joined the U.S. Army in 1965 and served two years at Fort Knox, after which he remained in the Army Reserves until June 1971. After his service, he worked at Presto in Eau Claire, Wisconsin where he made bullets and car-pooled with his future wife Lorraine. Ronnie and Lorraine married on June 23, 1972, in Arcadia, Wisconsin. They had two children – daughter, Sheila (Hoff) and son, Kevin. Ronnie was a builder of all sorts, for his whole life. He worked road construction for Trierweiler for nearly 20 years where he made many lifelong friendships. Afterward he continued his work as an independent carpenter and handyman extraordinaire. Ronnie and Lorraine lived in their home in Independence for over 50 years after buying it from his grandmother Anna. He remodeled it and added to it over decades, including multiple garages, patios, ponds, and the gardens tended by Lorraine. He also built his daughter and son-in-law’s home in Ettrick. His workmanship can be seen in and around the community. Even while ill in the last months of his life, he remodeled a bathroom in his home. Ronnie was a collector of classic cars, owning ten at the time of his passing. Ronnie and Lorraine both enjoyed a good days work. Ronnie made friends that he kept for a lifetime. On nearly every morning for decades, he had coffee with friends Michael and Richard Warner, brother-in-law Jerry Feuling, and other friends popping in for a donut, a laugh, or to pick Ronnie’s brain on how to fix something. Lorraine would always say “Her Ronnie could fix anything, except a TV.” Ronald and Lorraine celebrated 50 years of marriage in the summer of 2022, prior to her passing in December. Ronald loved to travel with Lorraine, Sheila and Jerrod going to Hawaii, Alaska, Utah, Nevada, Niagara Falls, and many national parks including Glacier and Yosemite. His last trip was with Sheila and Jerrod to Florida’s Key West, Cocoa Beach and the Everglades in February 2023. He is reunited in heaven with his wife, Lorraine, their son, Kevin; his parents; brother, Laverne (Red); brother-in-law, Bobby Getter; and other family and friends. He is watching over daughter and son-in-law, Sheila and Jerrod Hoff (Ettrick), three grand-kitties (L.J., Indee, and Bitty); sister and brother-in-law, Shirley and Jerome Feuling (Independence); sister, Barb Getter (Blair); sister, Marlene Marsolek and partner Pat Sylla (Galesville); and Michael (Pata) and Richard (Kathy) Warner, along with extended family and friends. Special thank you to the friends and neighbors who visited and sent well wishes, to the staff of the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center in La Crosse for their extraordinary care, and to the Eau Claire Mayo Hospice Team for their incredible care and comfort to Ronnie and his family. Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, at S.S. Peter and Paul Catholic Church with Father George Thayilkuzhitottu officiating. Family and friends are welcome for visitation beginning at 9:00 a.m. until the time of service at church. Burial of Ronald and Lorraine will immediately follow at S.S. Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Independence. Military rites will be conducted by Sura-Wiersgalla American Legion Post #186. To express condolences to his family online, please visit www.edisonfuneralhome.com. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Ronald E Marsolek, please visit our flower store.