Nancy A. Rhyner's Obituary
Nancy A. (Brooks) Rhyner passed away on Wednesday August 30, 2023. Nancy was born in Racine, WI on March 4, 1958 to the late Everett and Frances Brooks.
Nancy grew up in Racine and graduated from J. I. Case High School. Nancy also attended Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton, WI. Nancy and her 3 siblings were raised in the country in Racine, and lived on a dead-end road. It was a nice neighborhood with lots of neighborhood children to play with. There were always lots of fun things to do playing outside with each other. Whether it was making secret forts in the backwoods, or playing “Kick the Can,” or ice-skating on the frozen swamp in the Winter. They played outside, no matter what the weather was. They had good times and great fun growing up in the country on good old Slater Ave. Nancy grew up in the 70’s and loved John Denver and his music. Her younger sister can attest to the fact that Nancy loved playing her John Denver records! Nancy’s first job (besides doing lots of babysitting!) was working at Dunkin’ Donuts on Lathrop Ave in Racine. When Nancy was in Junior High School, her parents built a cottage on the Fox River in Omro, WI. The family spent many weekends, holidays, and vacations at the cottage. Nancy loved it up here so much that she decided that she wanted to live up here. She would consider it one of the best decisions she ever made.
She landed herself a job at The Pioneer Inn here in Oshkosh. It was there that she would meet
her husband Paul Rhyner. They were married on August 12, 1978. They were blessed with a
daughter Holly. Nancy loved spending time with her husband and daughter, and with family and
friends, whether it was playing games or just visiting and sharing a meal, storing up many good
memories.
Some of the places that Nancy worked for were PrintCo (in Omro), Lunchroom and
Playground Aide Duty at Oakwood School, and was an Office Temp worker for Landmark, The
Staffing Resource, for many years. When their daughter Holly was in high school, Nancy got a
job at the Oshkosh Correctional Institution. She worked there for 18 years until her retirement in
2020.
Paul and Nancy have been long time members of St. Raphael’s Parish, since 1980.
Nancy was an original member of the St. Raphael Adult Choir. She was a faithful member of
the choir for 19 years, rarely missing a practice or a mass to sing at. She loved being in the
choir and made many life-long friends from it. Nancy is survived by her husband Paul, her
daughter Holly, her siblings: Ken (Sharon) Brooks, Jim (Elizabeth) Brooks, Laura (Bob)
Dempsey, and her in-laws Mark (Paula) Rhyner and Susan (Jim) Yee. Nancy is also survived
by many good friends, many nieces and nephews, and other family members.
Nancy’s family would like to thank the Vince Lombardi Cancer Center Staff for their compassionate care. They would also like to thank Aurora Hospice Care for their good and compassionate care of Nancy.
Services will be held at St. Raphael’s church on Friday September 8, 2023. Visitation will be
held from 9:00 am till 11:00 am, followed by mass at 11:00 am.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to The Oshkosh Area Humane Society.
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