Obituary for Walter Marohl

Walter J. “Wally” Marohl, age 83, passed away on Thursday, October 10, 2024, at Three Oaks Health Service, Marshfield, with his family at his side.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 am on Saturday, October 19, 2024, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Stratford, with Rev. Sengole Vethanayagam officiating. Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery, Town of Eau Pleine, Marathon County, where military rites will be conducted by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post #6352. Members of the Stratford Fire Department will serve as pallbearers and members of the Wisconsin State Firefighters Association will form a guard of honor.  The visitation will be from 4:00 pm until 8:00 pm on Friday at Sauter/Rembs Funeral Home, Stratford, and from 9:00 am until service time on Saturday at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. The Knights of Columbus will recite the rosary at 6:30 pm on Friday at the funeral home.

Walter was born on February 8, 1941, at home on the family farm in the Town of Cleveland, Marathon County, the second of six sons, to Henry and Cecelia (Seidl) Marohl. He attended St. Joseph’s Catholic School and was a 1959 graduate of Columbus Catholic High School. After high school he attended Holy Cross Seminary in LaCrosse for two years. He then met the love of his life, Bernice “Bea” Kane and they were married on July 2, 1966. She died on September 3, 2023, after 57 years together.

Wally was first employed as a manager for F.W. Woolworth Company in Michigan, and in 1978 he began announcing sports for a radio station in Manistique, MI. In 1984 he returned to Stratford and worked at Figis’s cold storage and then at Marshfield Clinic Supply Department, retiring in 2009. In 1998, he and his wife began Northside Elder Estates, a community based residential facility in Stratford, which they owned and operated until their retirement in 2016.

Wally served in the Wisconsin Army National Guard from 1963 until his honorable discharge in 1969. In September of 2018, Wally and four of his brothers attended the Never Forgotten Honor Flight together. He was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, where he served on the church council, as an usher, Eucharistic minister, and reader. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus and was honored as knight of the year. He was a member of the Stratford Area Fire Department, serving as chief for 10 years, and a member of the Stratford Chamber of Commerce, serving a term as president. In 1986 he began announcing the Stratford Tiger football games. His passion for announcing led him to announcing Pop Warner football, high school basketball, wrestling, baseball and track, and he was known as the “voice of the Tigers.” He was a charter member of the Stratford Area Historical Society and served on the Heritage Days Committee and organized and announced the entertainment on the stage at Heritage Days. In 2008 Wally was awarded Stratford’s Finest award.

Wally is survived by his children, Kyle Marohl (Kyla Brumley) of Sheboygan and Kristin Schar (Joel Kaiser) of Stratford, and his grandson and his pride and joy, Benjamin Schar. He is further survived by his brothers, Melvin (Mary) Marohl of Athens, Henry (Pat) Marohl, Jr. of Stratford, Anthony Marohl of Wausau, and William (Sue) Marohl of Stratford.
He was preceded in death by is parents, his wife, Bea, a son Kent, a brother, Gordon, and sisters-in-law, Doris and Jenneva Marohl.

Condolences may be sent online to www.rembsfh.com