James “Jim” A. Byrne, of Waukesha, died at the age of 90, at the home he built on Saturday, December 7, 2013 surrounded by his loving family. He was born in New Berlin on June 13, 1923 the son of George Matthew and Isabel (nee Biwer) Byrne. He proudly served his country in the United States Navy during WWII on the USS Piedmont. On May 29, 1948 he married Elizabeth Yopps; she preceded him in death on December 6, 2008. Jim worked for Allis Chalmers retiring in 1982. Following retirement he worked as a crossing guard for 18 years at the intersection of Oakland and Arcadian Avenues and also worked for Bauer Bros. Produce. Jim was a longtime member of St. Joseph Catholic Church where he was a member of the Holy Name Society and ser ved as an usher. He was one of the two remaining charter members of the Hoeppner-Horn Bros VFW Post 5716 in New Berlin. Jim enjoyed gardening, woodworking, and watching Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. He was an avid Milwaukee Brewers and Green Bay Packers fan and loved fishing and spending time at his cottage up north. Most of all, he enjoyed being with his family.
He will be sadly missed by his children, Michael Byrne of Mukwonago, Patricia Byrne, Stephen (Claudia) Byrne, Timothy (Roxanne) Byrne, Thomas Byrne, Kathleen (Fred) Gamez, Colleen (Steve) Bauer, and Terrence (Christine) Byrne all of Waukesha, his grandchildren: Emily Bauer of Waukesha, Eric, Lauren and Allison Byrne of Brookfield, Jeffrey (Angelique) Byrne of Waukesha, Andrew (Maureen) Byrne of Wauwatosa, Rebecca (Matthew) Freisleben of New Berlin, James and Suzanne Byrne of Waukesha, Gabrielle and Elise Gamez of Waukesha, and Zachary Jaeger of Waukesha, and his great-grandchildren: Isabelle and Evan Freisleben, Camden and Hadley Byrne, Josephine and Myles Byrne and Connor Gamez. Jim is further survived by his sister Margaret Farner of New Berlin, his sister-in-law Lois Seidl along with nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. In addition to his wife and his parents, he was preceded in death by his brothers Howard and Francis Byrne, his sister Katherine, sisters-in-law Eleanor (Howard) Ramstack, Evelyn (Edward) Krahn and Sally Byrne, and his brothers-in-law Conrad Farner and Roland Seidl, and his daughter-in-law Laura Huebner Byrne.
The family wishes to extend a heartfelt thank you to Waukesha Memorial Hospital and to ProHealth Homecare and Hospice for their care and kindness given to them and their father.
Visitation will be held on Wednesday, December 11, 2013 from 4:00PM until the time of the 7:00PM Rosary Service at the Randle-Dable-Brisk Funeral Home, 1110 S. Grand Avenue, Waukesha. Services continue on Thursday, December 12, 2013 beginning with prayers at the funeral home at 9:15AM followed by a procession to St. Joseph Catholic Church, 822 N. East Avenue, Waukesha, WI 53186 for the 10:00AM funeral Mass. Entombment with full military honors will follow at St. Joseph Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials are appreciated to St. Joseph Catholic Church (address above).
Randle-Dable-Brisk Funeral, Cremation and Preplanning Services is honored to serve the family. For further information, please call the funeral home at 262-547-4035 or visit our website at
www.waukeshafunerals.com
for directions or to leave the family an online tribute message.