Obit: Hoffman, Lucille G. “Lucy” (1936 - 2021)

Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org 

Surnames: Hoffman, Kaliszewski, Soborowicz, Daleiden, Kishton, Anderson, Levy, Zurakowski, Lewandowski

----Source: Cuddie Funeral Home (Thorp, Clark Co., WI) 7/01/2021

Hoffman, Lucille G. “Lucy” (22 February 1936 – 30 June 2021)

Lucille “Lucy” Hoffman passed peacefully into the care and keeping of the Lord on June 30, 2021, surrounded by her loving family. She fought a long and complex battle with lymphoma, specifically Walden Strom’s Macroglobulinemia, and through her efforts to raise awareness to the condition, brought many needed resources to that fight in the hope of helping others.

Lucy is survived by her husband Roger, 7 daughters: Ann, Gwen, Suzy, Julie (Peter Daleiden), Heidi (Louis Kishton), Rebekah (Joel Anderson), Sarah (Jon Levy); grandchildren: Erica (Matt), Megan (Chris), Charlie, Matthew, Michael, Gabriella, Louisa, Lucia, and Katherine; great-grandchildren: Jackson, Lucas, Douglas and (little) Lucille; her sisters: Frances Zurakowski and Val Lewandowski; and 3 brothers: Anton, Joseph, and Rich. She is preceded in death by her brother, Raymond, and sister, Marlene. Lucy was godmother to 14 godchildren.

Lucy was born to Victor and Lottie Soborowicz (nee Kaliszewski) on a very cold snowy February 22, 1936, four miles northwest of Thorp on a farm located on the banks of the North Fork of the Eau Claire River. She was raised within the strong traditions of the local Polish farming community and often shared memories of walking to the woods barefoot with her brother Ray to bring in the cows for milking and the exciting time electricity was installed in the barn. Lucy attended Thorp High School where she met Roger who first caught her attention on the bus home from a basketball game in 1954. They married in 1958, took over operation of Hoffman Dairy from Roger’s father in 1970, and raised their daughters one mile West of Thorp, until moving into town in 1985.

Lucy began RN training at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Marshfield in 1954, graduating in 1957. Her first job was at University of Minnesota Hospital, Minneapolis, a time from which she had many fun memories. Moving back to Thorp to get married, she then worked nights at Victory Memorial Hospital in Stanley, often with a very small staff to care for regular patients and to assist in the delivery of many babies who seemed to arrive in the early morning hours--of which she had fond memories. In 1984, she transferred to Thorp Care Center in Thorp, where she acted as both Director of Nursing and Administrator until 1989. She finished her career with a return to St. Joseph Hospital in Marshfield and retired in 2000.

Lucy was a creative artist with fabric, yarn, thread, paper and color, as well as an avid and successful gardener – talents she freely shared with her family and many in the community. Lucy enjoyed travel, golf, visiting family, styling her home (she was the original ‘fixer-upper’), and many volunteer activities, as well as being an active parishioner at St. Bernard - St. Hedwig Parish.

Funeral service will be held at St. Bernard-St. Hedwig Catholic Church at 10:30 A.M. Saturday, July 3, 2021. Visitation will be at the Church from 9:30 - 10:30 A.M. Burial will be in St. Bernard's Catholic Cemetery following the service.

The family would like to thank the staff at Marshfield Clinic Health Care System for their care and support over the years, and St. Joseph’s Hospital Hospice of Chippewa Falls for making her final days peaceful and providing comfort to all.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the International Waldon Strom’s Macroglobulinemia Foundation (https://iwmf.com)  in memory of Lucille G. Hoffman or plant a special flower in your garden in her memory.