Tribute for Mary Ellen Brennan
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Becker Ritter Funeral Home & Cremation Services
Tribute for Mary Ellen Brennan |  

Mary Ellen Brennan passed peacefully into the hands of the Lord on May 26, 2024. Born August 9, 1928 in Albion, Nebraska, she was the daughter...
Tribute for Mary Ellen Brennan | Becker Ritter Funeral Home & Cremation Services
Mary Ellen Brennan passed peacefully into the hands of the Lord on May 26, 2024. Born August 9, 1928 in Albion, Nebraska, she was the daughter of the late Dr. William Higgins and the late Gladys Ackerman Higgins, loving sister of the late Ann Catherine Sophie and the late William P. (the late Jean) Higgins. Mary attended Duchesne College in Omaha and graduated from Marquette University in Milwaukee. She and her late husband, James Brennan, were married October 18, 1952 in Albion, NE, lived in Janesville, Wisconsin from 1957 to 2013, and in Wauwatosa, WI from 2013 until her passing.

Her greatest joy in life was her family; including her seven children: Mary K., of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Tom (Nancy) of Janesville; Pat (Sarah) of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin; Dan of Madison, Wisconsin; Sheila (Mike) of Powell, Ohio; Ann (Pat) of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin; Jim (Monica) of Wheaton, Illinois; and her 16 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.

Mary never forgot her Depression-era childhood and was deeply impacted, often sharing stories of the Dust Bowl days and eventually WW2. Before college she travelled to the ski resort of Sun Valley, Idaho to work and learn to ski, later sharing her love of the slopes with her family at the Oak Ridge ski hill near Janesville. A very big part of her life was her Irish heritage - she stayed connected with her relatives in Ireland and loved researching the family lineage.

Mary was absolutely devoted to her husband and children. She was tough, hardworking and faith-driven, kept a beautiful, organized home and fed big dinners nightly to seven unruly kids with grace. She took her children to libraries at an early age and shared her love of reading and life-long learning. She and her husband Jim set a great example for their children.

A favorite quote was: “This is what God asks of you, only this; to do what is right, to love goodness and walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8.

She’ll be missed terribly by all of us.

Gathering at the Becker Ritter Funeral Home on Tuesday, June 4, 2024 4PM-6PM. Additional gathering at St. Camillus, East Residence, Guardian Angel Chapel, 10100 W. Bluemound Road, Wauwatosa WI 53226, on Wednesday, June 5, 2024 10AM-11AM. Mass of Christian Burial at 11AM. Private burial at Holy Cross Cemetery.