Ardell "Babs" Storch

Born on the North side of La Crosse on June 23rd, 1922, Ardell “Babs” Storch passed away on April 12th, 2016 at the age of 93 after living a very full life. The light of her life was her husband, Jack. He was her high school sweetheart and soul mate. They were blessed with being married for 63 years. She and Jack served their country during World War II by moving to Portland, Oregon where Jack worked in the shipyards. They told many stories of their cross-county journey to Portland during the winter and dealing with unexpected car repairs and finding places to stay while driving cross country before the interstates were built.
Although they enjoyed living in Portland, Babs and Jack returned to La Crosse to help take care of the family. They lived with Jack’s parents at 304 Losey Blvd South where Jack went to work in the family barbershop and Babs took care of the house and his parents. Throughout her life, Babs was the care giver to many, including her in-laws, parents, and many aunts and uncles. Babs caring did not end with her family. She also took care of many she never knew. Babs and Jack would welcome many strangers who had a car accident at the corner of Losey and Cass into their home so they could call for help and they kept extra blankets in case they were needed.
In 1958, after being told she would not be able to have children, Babs and Jack were blessed with having a son, Marc. He became the second love of her life. They continued to live with Jack’s parents and Babs now managed the three generation house hold. She always found time to be with Marc and volunteered at his school and was his Cub Scout Den Mother. She opened her heart to many children and delighted in being involved with them throughout her life.
In 1989, Bab’s opened her heart yet again, when Marc married Beth. Bab’s quickly adopted Beth as her “daughter” and they enjoyed many good times together usually centered around shopping. Babs was delighted to become a grandmother when Kate was born in 1995. They would share their love of art and crafts and Babs was proud to see Kate’s artistic skills grow.
Babs had many interests and hobbies throughout her life. She loved antiques and spent many summers refinishing pieces she and Jack found at garage sales. She also made stain glass windows, which still remain in the house on Losey Blvd. She also loved her weekly shopping trips with her sister, Iris, and enjoyed visiting with her and her family, but her great joy was collecting vintage dolls. At one point she ran a doll hospital where she repaired dolls for many people. Her skills as a seamstress were amazing as she hand sewed many authentic replica clothing items for the dolls. She was also a long standing member of the local doll club and looked forward to meeting with the “girls” every month.
After Jack’s death in 2009, and having some health issues, life became harder for Babs. In 2014 she had to move out of her beloved house on Losey Blvd, although she was able to live closer to Marc, Beth and Kate it was never the same as living in her home. Babs requested that neither service nor visitation be held in her honor. She will be greatly missed by those who knew and loved her.