Thomas E. Venner

Thomas E. Venner, 81, of Genoa, Wis., peacefully passed away at home, with his family at his side, on Tuesday, February 8, 2022.

Tom was born in La Crosse on April 6, 1940, to Francis and Mary (Pedretti) Venner. He was raised on the family farm in rural Genoa. He attended grade school at St. Charles School and was a graduate of Aquinas High School. On September 24, 1960, Tom married Bonnie Jeanne Beck at St. Charles Catholic Church in Genoa.

Tom was an excellent farmer.  His entire life was spent on the family farmstead on Hickory Ridge.  Even though he claimed to be a retired farmer, we all know he never really stopped farming.  He was one of the first farmers in the area to employ early conservation practices on his hilly farmland.  He received several awards for his farming methods.  After “retiring” from farming, Tom worked for the Town of Genoa as a patrolman.  He really enjoyed driving the big trucks and plowing the snow.  He never really considered it work.  Tom was also a school bus driver for the De Soto School District.  He liked driving the daily bus routes, but he loved driving his favorite team, the De Soto Pirates, to their sporting events.  Tom was a longtime member of the Genoa Lions Club and had served as the club’s president.  He served as the Treasurer of the Town of Genoa for many years.  He was also on the board of the Chaseburg Creamery and for many years was an active member of the Knights of Columbus.

Tom greeted everyone with a welcoming smile, could and would strike up a conversation with anyone.  His true joy in life was his family.  He was a devoted husband of 122 years (61 each) to his loving wife Bonnie.  When asked about being married for so long, Tom said that the most important thing was to “choose love every day.”  Tom was also a devoted father of nine children.  He loved living the country life with them.  Farming, hunting, gardening, and playing lots of cards.  His competitiveness was shown best around a table of cards, “but if he could only get some good cards.”  He also loved watching his children play sports.  As they grew up and had families of their own, it gave Tom many more years of sports to watch.  When Tom was a young man, he enjoyed playing baseball and basketball.  As he got older, he began playing softball and continued playing softball into his fifties.  His favorite place to hit the ball was right down the third baseline.  Tom was a lifelong hunter.  He was famous for his family’s dried sausage.  After Tom “retired” from farming, he bought a boat and began fishing.  He became quite good at catching walleyes below the dam and catching bluegills in lots of secret spots.  While working he was known to say, “why would anybody go fishing when there is farming to do?”, but once retired the saying changed to, “why would anybody go to work when there is fishing to do?”  Another retirement hobby for Tom was reading books.  He was also very proud of his Italian heritage.

Tom is survived by his wife, Bonnie; his children and their families: Steve (Irma) Venner of San Antonio, TX, and their children, Thomas and Talia Venner, Edward (Teri) Venner of Neenah, WI, and their son, Thomas (Allison) Venner and granddaughter, Charlotte “Charlee”, Raymond (Tuyet Anh) Venner of Davis, CA, and their children, Thomas, Tyler and Tristan Venner, Deborah Venner of Phoenix, AZ, John (Annette) Venner of Tomah, WI, and their children, Jedidiah (Hanna), Jacob, Benjamin, Nathan, Rachel and Joe Venner, Kenneth Venner of Genoa, Jennifer (Gary) Pedersen of New Lisbon, WI, and their children, Kyrsten (Mitchel) Hess, Cullen (Michaela) Pedersen and granddaughter, Wren, and Larissa and Gunnar Pedersen, Roxanne (Jeremy) Johnson of La Crosse, WI, and their children, Andy and Megan Johnson, and Tom (Renee) Venner of Stoddard, WI, and their children, Adam, Brynn, Ryan, Thomas and Zach Venner. Tom is also survived by his siblings: James (Marlys) Venner of Denver, CO, Marilyn (Bernard) Domke of La Crosse, Duane (Mary) Venner of Denver, Jerome (Phyllis) Venner of La Crosse, Patricia (Bob) Vitrone of Loudon, TN, Dave (Linda) Venner of Stoddard, Gary (Marleen) Venner of Genoa, and Don (Sue) Venner of La Crosse; many nieces and nephews; and brothers and sisters-in-law, Roger Beck of Genoa, Beverly (Jim) Davison of Madison, AL, Dan (Charlie) Beck of New Albin, IA, and Carol Beck of La Crosse. He was preceded in death by his parents, Francis and Mary Venner; his in-laws, Walter and Violet Beck; and a brother-in-law, Ken Beck.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m., Friday, February 11 ^th , at St. Charles Catholic Church in Genoa. Rev. Daniel Sedlacek will officiate. Burial will follow in St. Charles Catholic Cemetery. Family and friends may call at Schumacher-Kish Funeral and Cremation Services of La Crosse on Thursday from 4:30 until 7:00 p.m., where a prayer service will be held at 6:45 p.m., and at the church on Friday from 10:00 a.m. until the time of Mass. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to St. Charles Parish and School, Gundersen Health System Hospice, or the Genoa Lions Club.