Mary Jean Weiss

Mary Jean (Sheahan) Weiss, age 80, of Reedsburg, passed away on Friday, November 23, 2018. She was born at home in Ithaca, Richland County, Wisconsin on April 21, 1938, first born daughter of Edward and Lorrayne (Warren) Sheahan.  She attended various schools, depending on her dad’s employment. She started high school in Ithaca for the first two years, then on to Baraboo, and then to Cazenovia, and was among the first graduation class of Weston in 1956. Then she worked in Madison at a bank for a year, and then married Francis Holly. They had three children, Julie, David and Robert. They moved often, including a couple of years in Illinois. In 1976 she married Gilbert Weiss, and they lived in the Wausau area for several years, before moving to the home they owned in Loganville, when he retired in 1988. She was happy to finally settle down in her own home and loved decorating it for the seasons. She had a large collection of sunflower items and also of snowmen. She had many family gatherings which everyone enjoyed. She also loved growing her own flowers and took many pictures of them. Father Bowens was a great help to her in learning about flowers, as he had a wonderful garden. She gifted friends and family with her flower greeting cards, and sold them at craft sales also. She had numerous jobs through the years, most involving sales of one kind or another.

She is survived by her children: Julie (George) Holly, David Holly and Robert (Kyla) Holly as well as his children, Nathan and Josh and their mother, Kathy. Other survivors include four sisters, Luanne Krohn, Kaye Brimmer, Jenny (Tom) Clarkson and Nancy (Dave) Sheahan; also by step-grandsons, Jerry and Danny Weiss and their mother, Betty Weiss as well as several step-children.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband of 36 years, Gilbert; her grandson, D.J. Holly (son of David) and Jerry Weiss (step-son), and long-time pal of Canada, Impi Sawchuk.

For many years she was a member of St. Boniface Catholic Church in Lime Ridge and a member of the Renew Group which started in 2000. Their group met monthly for Mass, meeting, discussion and potluck. She volunteered as their card lady, an usher, money counter and children’s envelope recorder.

She often met friends at Pizza Hut for lunch. A group of family and friends attended her 70th birthday party there and she made her one and only scrapbook from pictures of the event. She was an avid reader, the Irish author Maeve Binchy being her favorite, and had a collection of all of her books, gifted to her by her son, Rob. She was never bored and she didn’t know the meaning of the word. She had numerous hobbies, including photography, and took many pictures of her flowers to use making cards. Gilbert made a large farm-like wagon for her which she filled each summer with an assortment of flowers and was a bright spot in the side yard of their home.

She and Gilbert had four cats during their life together and their pictures made it onto many cards also. Another hobby was pen-palling, and she had one in England since she was 12 years old. She and Anita wrote every few months but never met in person. Most of her pals were also card decorators, and the creative juices were really flowing back in the years when there were no rubber stamps to be found. Some people were very clever at this hobby as well as good letter writers.

She and Gilbert were music lovers and enjoyed many entertainers who came to Wausau when they lived there and in Wisconsin Dells at the Crystal Grand. They also enjoyed dancing.

Many hours were spent on the phone chatting with family and friends, long distance and near by.

Her father, being Irish, passed on his sense of humor to his daughters and grandchildren as well. It made for much fun and laughter when they were together. They were very proud of their Irish heritage.

She was never happier than when she was in the company of her grandsons, Nathan and Josh Holly, and in earlier years, she was the “M&M” grandma of Danny and Jerry Weiss.

Her motto was…Count your blessings, which she did daily, despite her many health problems. She was thankful for her faith, family and friends, who helped her in her time of need. Ed and Sharon, Russ and Ivy, Joyce, Judy and long-time friend, Patty Mertens, and helper Dennis Loomis.

A Mass of Christian Burial for Mary Jean Weiss will be conducted at 11:00 A.M., Saturday, December 1, 2018 at St. Boniface Catholic Church in Lime Ridge with Father Sanctus Ibe officiating. Burial will follow in St. Bridget’s Cemetery, Westford Township. Visitation will be held on Friday from 5:00-7:00 P.M. at the Farber Funeral Home in Reedsburg, and on Saturday from 10:00 A.M. until the time of the service at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorials of remembrance are preferred.

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