Frances J. Bertoldi

Frances Senger Bertoldi, 90, formerly of Iron Mountain, died Saturday, October 25, 2014. She was born to Frank and Pauline (Troyer) Senger in North Dakota on June 23, 1924, the child of parents of German heritage who arrived in the United States after their families immigrated from Russia in the early 1900s. As an infant, she moved with her family to the Iron Mountain area as they searched for a better life and livelihood in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. She was a child during the depression, and during her teen years she experienced the turmoil of pre-World War II. She graduated from Iron Mountain High School in 1942 and, after working for the Iron Mountain Health Department for a short time, she enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1944. She received her basic training at Hunter College, N.Y. and attended Yeoman School, Cedar Falls, Iowa, before being stationed in San Francisco. She separated from the Navy in 1946 as Yeoman 2nd class. She returned to Iron Mountain and on October 12, 1946 she married George Bertoldi, a fellow Iron Mountain High School graduate who had returned home after serving in the Army in Europe. Together they made a life for themselves in Iron Mountain, raising three children and caring for a fourth daughter who died at age two, dedicated to family, faith, community, and country. Frances was an active member of St Mary and St Joseph Church. She belonged to the American Legion, the Iron Mountain Kingsford Women’s Club, and the Daughters of Isabella, in which she held several offices, including president. She volunteered at the VA Hospital through the American Red Cross and at St Vincent DePaul Society. She served on the Community Advisory Board for WNMU TV and WNMU FM for Northern Michigan University. After vacationing in Florida for several years, she and George moved to Sarasota, Florida, where she volunteered at Doctors Hospital of Sarasota and was a member of the Sarasota Navy Women Association. For the past year she lived in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, where she and George this month celebrated their 68th wedding anniversary. In her later years she especially enjoyed recounting her experiences during World War II and sharing with her children and grandchildren stories of her childhood and what it was like growing up in the 1930s and 1940s. She is survived by her husband of 68 years, George Bertoldi; three children: Marilyn (Thomas) Swiontek, Pewaukee, Wisconsin, Jean (Jim) Miazga, Rhinelander, Wisconsin and Scottsdale, Arizona, and Thomas (Karin) Bertoldi, Bloomington, Minnesota; four grandchildren: Kathleen (Eric) Caylor, and Tyler, Elisa and Katie Bertoldi; and two great grandchildren, Lorelei and Anneleise Caylor; her sister Elizabeth Roy, and two brothers, Frank Senger and Jack (Carol) Senger; and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her two year old daughter, Theresa in 1958, and by her sister-in-law, Lois Senger, who passed away on the same day. Friends may call from 9:30 am until 11:00 am Friday at St. Mary & St. Joseph Church. Funeral services will be at 11:00 am Friday at the church. Fr. Daniel Zaloga will offer the Mass of Christian Burial. Burial will be in Cemetery Park. The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Iron Mountain Saint Vincent de Paul Society or to a charity of your choosing. Condolences to the family of Frances Senger Bertoldi may be expressed online at www.ernashfuneralhomes.com The family has entrusted the Erickson-Rochon & Nash Funeral Home with the funeral arrangements.

Frances J. Bertoldi

June 23, 1924 - October 25, 2014