Adeline M. “Tootie” Bratz, 95, of Sheboygan, passed away peacefully on December 19, 2025 at Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice. She was born on July 30, 1930, in Thorp, Wisconsin, to the late Fred and Matilda (Oberle) Schmidt. She attended and graduated from St. Bernard’s Catholic School in 1944. She later graduated from Thorp High School, Class of 1948, and Sheboygan Business College in 1949.
She married the love of her life, Donald Bratz, on November 11, 1950, at Gesu Church in Milwaukee. Along with being a homemaker, she worked for the Muscular Dystrophy Association for many years. Adeline later worked as a bookkeeper at Morningside Nursing Home and Greendale Health Center until her retirement in 1990. She was a member of St. Dominic Catholic Church and the Women’s Catholic Charity Club. Adeline volunteered at St. Dominic Parish, the St. Dominic Mission Circle, St. Nicholas Hospital, and the American Red Cross. She loved watching the Packers, Brewers, Bucks, and Badgers on TV. She also loved to read and play cards and bingo with family and friends.
Adeline is survived by her three sons, Michael (Diane) Bratz of Appleton, James (Jodi) Bratz of Sheboygan, and Thomas Bratz of Sheboygan; one granddaughter, Alissa (significant other Jason Mills) McKnight; one great-granddaughter, Khloe McKnight; one sister-in-law, Ruth Noah of Hawthorne, California; and several nieces, nephews, and friends.
She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Donald Bratz; one son, John Bratz; her parents, Fred and Matilda Schmidt; her in-laws, Walter and Anna Bratz; one sister, Rachel (Arnold) Mortensen; one brother, William (Edith) Schmidt; her in-laws, Dick and Bede Shilts, Bob and Dorothy Huhn, and Fred Noah; three nephews; one great-nephew; and two nieces.
The family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the staff at both Pine Haven, especially Heather Jones, and Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice for their compassion and love.
A Funeral Mass for Adeline will be held at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, December 26, 2025 at St. Dominic Catholic Church, 2133 N. 22nd St., Sheboygan, WI 53081. Father Nick Baumgardner, will officiate. Visitation will be held at St. Dominic Catholic Church from 10:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m. Entombment will immediately follow at Garden of Peace at Greenlawn Memorial Park, Kohler.
Zimmer Westview Funeral & Cremation Care Center is assisting the family in arrangements. Online condolence messages can be made on www.zimmerfuneralhome.com.
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