Obituaries

Madison - On January 7, 2015, Donald A. Lange, age 82, ended his journey on earth and entered Eternal Life.

Don was born in Fond du Lac, WI on June 4, 1932, the son of Arnold and Myrtle (Streeter) Lange. He graduated from Goodrich High School in Fond du Lac in 1950 and joined the Air Force in 1951. During his time in Service, he spent two years on Okinawa with a Control and Warning Squadron. After the Korean War, Don returned to Selfridge AFB in Michigan, where he met his wife of 59 years, Phylis (Gertschen) who was also in the Air Force. They were married on August 6, 1955 in Milwaukee.

Don graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Madison with a BBA degree in accounting and minors in law and real estate. He spent 30 years working in all areas of accounting. He worked for 10 years as Corporate Treasure of First Federal Savings. He also worked for Cuna International and the Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services. He was a member of the Masonic Lodge #5-Madison, VFW post 8483-Madison, and BPO Elks Lodge #1511-Bradenton, Florida. Don was a licensed Real-Estate Broker and at one time a Certified Property Assessor. He liked to dabble in Real-Estate and was very proud of the sub-division (Lange's Sunrise Edition-Madison) that he planned and developed. He was active in the Assisted Living Business and the Hospitality business.

Don loved to sing. In his youth, he sang in the junior and senior high school choirs as well as the church choir. As an adult, he sang with a number of church choirs, going on concert tours throughout Europe and Iceland. He took a memorable tour of Italy with the Diocesan Choir in 2003 where the choir sang at an Audience with Pope John Paul II. He sang with three barber shop choruses; the Madison Capital Chordsmen, the Rock Valley Chordhawks, and the Bradenton Florida Sandpipers. He also sang with the Madison "Maennerchor" and the Edgewood Community Choir.

Don enjoyed bowling, golf, and tennis. He played on the UW Steven's Point Tennis Team in 1955. He was a member of the Madison Curling Club and was an avid curler for over 35 years. He loved spending time outdoors and enjoyed being near the water, whether it was a lake, river, or ocean. Don cherished the times spent ice and musky fishing with his friends. Some of the best times of his life were spent at his cottage near Coloma, WI. He looked forward to the annual "Deer Camp" and being there with all of his buddies who joined in the hunt. For Don, Deer Camp was a major social event. Camp will not be the same without Don, but his spirit and all of the memories will live on

Don is survived by his wife Phylis; his son John; and his daughter-in-law Judy; his grandchildren, Rachel and Robert; his brother Robert (Carol); his sister Sharon Soukup (Tom) and many in-laws, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. He also leaves behind his faithful friend and companion, Willie, his little poodle.

Don was preceded in death by his parents and his brother-in-law and friend, James Gertschen.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 17, 2015 at ST. PETER CATHOLIC CHURCH, 5001 N. Sherman Ave., Madison, with Father Roger Nilles presiding. A visitation will be held from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. on Friday, January 16, 2015 at RYAN FUNERAL HOME, 2418 N. Sherman Ave., Madison, and again at the church on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until the time of Mass. Burial will be at Hillside Cemetery, Coloma, WI.

The family would like to thank the staff at the Aster Retirement Community and the doctors, nurses, and staff at St. Mary's Hospital for their kind care and support.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to American Heart Association, 7272 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75231 or the Best Friends Animal Society, 5001 Angel Canyon Road, Kanab, UT, 84741. To view and sign this guestbook please visit www.ryanfuneralservice.com.