Yvonne Chapek

Yvonne M. Chapek died peacefully with her family at her side at her home in Cadott, WI on April 6 at the age of 87 following a brief, but fierce battle with cancer.

Vonnie is survived by her brother, Daniel Reali and her children, Renee Chapek (Shari Walters), Rick (Rhonda) Chapek, Joe Chapek (Sandy Zimmerman), Shelly Chapek, Tamara (Steve) Terman. Her surviving grandchildren include Lauren and Jordan Walters - children of Renee, Nathan (Amber) Chapek, Natasha (Andrew) Kellenberger, Nariah (Breana) Chapek - children of Rick, Ella and Ethan Terman - children of Tammy; great-grandchildren, Teryn, Braedan, Sawyer, Henry, Nora, Livia, Charles, Ashytn, Porter and Lennon; great-great-grandchildren, Crosby and Seeley.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 62 years, Richard (Dick) Chapek; parents, Clara (Vern) Bell, Joseph (Sandy) Reali; and sister, Mary Lou (Jim) Stordahl.

Vonnie was born on February 18, 1938 at home in Cornell, WI to Clara and Joe Reali. She graduated from Cornell High School in 1956. She worked at Rural Electric in Cornell and on September 29, 1956 married Dick, the love of her life.

Together with Dick, they managed a successful dairy farm building one of the first milking parlors in Wisconsin in 1960 and milking 120 cows. In 1969, together with brother-in-law Tom Chapek, they opened Panther Sales and Service and continued to sell Arctic Cat snowmobiles until 1979. Vonnie kept the books and also participated in sales where they met many customers who became lifelong friends. In 1978, Vonnie and Dick became partners in the acquisition of Crescent Bar and opened a hardware store in this location. Through these years, you could find Vonnie on the farm, either cooking, driving tractor or milking cows and sometimes tending bar and all the while being the most wonderful mom one could ask for. In 1990 they sold the farm and moved to Cadott. During those years, Vonnie worked at The Cadott Sentinel, Northwestern Motors and JLH Enterprises.

Vonnie loved gardening, enjoyed many musicals with her sister and daughters and sang for many years in the St. John's choir. In 2022, she was able to take a cruise down the coast of Italy with her family. One of her greatest joys was the gathering of the ever growing family and preparing the holiday meal. Vonnie had a love for all types of music from classical to country attending Country Fest for twenty-five years. Together with Dick, their love of Christmas was evident where their home displays and gatherings were enjoyed by many. Vonnie was an avid sports fan preferring to watch her beloved Packers, Badgers or Brewers over anything else. Vonnie will be remembered for her kindness to all, her witty sense of humor and her tremendous love of her family, friends and life.

A visitation is scheduled for Saturday, May 3 from 12 to 3 p.m. with a memorial service beginning at 3 p.m. at St. John's Lutheran Church, 215 Seminary St., Cadott, WI.

A celebration of life will follow at Half-Way Bar at 5 p.m.

A private family inurnment will be at the Cornell Cemetery at a later date.

The family would like to send a special thank you to Mysti Gouge, mom's in-home caregiver and Mayo Hospital in Eau Claire and Bloomer.

Leiser Funeral Home and Cremation Services Cadott, WI.