Bradley C. Roraff

Bradley Cullen Roraff was born November 12, 1969, to J. Michael Roraff and his then wife a short 15 months after Jon.  His favorite days were filled with swimming in Freise Lake, hunting, and playing sports with Jon and friends. Many days were spent hanging out with their friend Luke and his family. During his high school years his dad called the school to excuse him for a day so he could hunt geese. While not approved by the school it stuck with Brad as an example of great parenting and something he repeated for his girls in the future.

After graduating from Hartford High School (WI) he moved to La Crosse WI to attend UW-La Crosse and earn degrees in Biology and Chemistry. Competitive Body building, bouncing at the Red Lantern, fishing, hunting, or hanging out with  Scrip, Mary Beth, Earl, Slimmer, and Perch became the backbone of his college stories he’d tell the kids through the years.

Not many college students get homemade meals dropped off by their beloved grandparents. Living in La Crosse allowed Grandpa Andy and Grandma Carol to conveniently whip up and drop it off her culinary jewel of chocolate cake with thick fudge frosting. That frosting has been made in the Roraff house for his every birthday and almost every special occasion over the years.

“ Mawage, that blessed awangement, that dweam wifin a dweam. And wuv, tru wuv, will fowow you foweva. So tweasure your wuv.” — The Clergyman,

On July 16th, 1999, when marrying Christine (Sulik) he really wanted to have the clergyman do the wedding monologue from the Princess Bride.  But, you know, it was Grandma Carol’s parish and we decided to be low-key.  During 23 years of mawage it was the first of many quotes from songs, TV and movies that our, “Nature Boy,” would drop into conversations to amuse his girls.

Bridget was the first to know he was going to propose that October before, because he too chose her that day. After the wedding ceremony the room had a good laugh when she took the microphone and announced, “We’re having a baby.” As a 4-year-old she knew the order:  love, marriage, and then comes the baby in the baby carriage.

Eleven months later, on a hot, summer night in June, he played his favorite and longest softball game.  After the final play and a mad dash off the field to get us to the hospital Maddie joined our family a very short time later.

Brad was a person who showed his love by doing things for others. Over the years many hours were spent on building his dream home that held the people he cared about.  That home offered him a place to do projects and tinker with wood.  Being a sentimental person, he loved it when he was asked to make a wood arch as a gift to Mimi, daughter #3 (by love), for her wedding to Brandon.  That arch was used again when Joe proposed to Bridget.  Adding one Joe to the family was fun, but adding two Joes was double the fun! When Maddie and Joey announced their engagement Brad swooped up Joey in a bear hug and spun him around.  Our house with him is filled with great memories of lobster boils, so many kittens, big goofy dogs, playtime with the grandkids, and plenty of movies to quote. “Yay, I’m a llama again!!” Bonus points if you can name the movie.

Outside of the house he enjoyed fishing opener with his dad, brother, nephews, Maddie, and Joey.  Day to day life was better with him—particularly when it meant grocery shopping and making pterodactyl calls to locate others or playing Marco Polo and launching things into the cart.  Dinner outings to 5 Guys burgers would result in him shouting out “Bingo” when our number was called.  His love of life and fun manifested in almost all takeout orders he placed under Voldemort, Shrek, or Primrose Everdeen.

Brad unexpectedly passed away June 18th, 2023. He is proceeded in death by paternal grandparents Edwin and Dorothy Roraff, maternal grandparents Andy and Carol Anderson, two uncles Greg and Pat, mother-in-law Mary Ann Sulik and Sampson, his “Dopey” lab.

Brad’s memory will live on through wife Christine, daughters Bridget (Joe) Hoaglund, grandsons Lohgann and Noah. Maddie (Joey) Haverty, granddaughter due Oct.2023. Dad, Mike (Susan) Roraff, brother Jon (Cindy) Roraff, nephews Hunter and Ben.  Father-in-law David (Barb) Sulik, brother-in-law Tim (Michelle) Sulik and nephew Evan.  Marci Roraff, aunt, and wife to Greg, and of course his cousins that start with the letter “M” (Brad would look at them all together and name off Missy, Megan, and Malory in that order to connect the right name and face.)

We will have a hosted celebration of life on August 26th, 2023, at the La Crosse Distillery from 12-4 pm.  Please come join us and celebrate.

In lieu of flowers or plants he would prefer those considering gifts to support their local Special Olympics or Birth to 3 outreach office.  Gifts of plants are welcome, just know that Brad will be laughing from the other side knowing he was the only reason plants lived in the house 😊.