Arthur Laing Lazarus Jr., 92, died peacefully in his sleep Feb. 12, 2017, surrounded by family. He was born Sept.13, 1924, in Brazil, Ind., to the late Margaret (Yard) and Arthur Laing Lazarus Sr.
He was one of the Greatest Generation having enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after Pearl Harbor along with most members of his senior high school classmen at Mahopac High School in New York.
He served in the Pacific Theatre starting in Guadalcanal, Bougainville and Guam where he was awarded a Silver Star and Purple Heart for valor. He fought at Iwo Jima where he received his second Purple Heart and watched as the flag was raised on Mount Suribachi.
Arthur witnessed many major events in history. He remembered seeing then Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt while perched on his grandmother’s shoulders when he was 7 years old. He witnessed Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra play with the Yankees in “the house that Ruth built” and he stood honor guard for Charles de Gaulle and Haile Selassie.
He met Gloria Pareth while stationed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard after his return from the war. They were among the throngs in Times Square to celebrate the end of the war on Aug. 15, 1945. They married on Sept. 7, 1947, and recently celebrated their 69th anniversary.
After serving in the Korean War at Camp Lejeune, N.C., Arthur and Gloria moved to Milwaukee to start a new life and family. He was a purchasing agent for the Louis Allis Company in Milwaukee and built a home in North Cape, where he delighted in gardening.
He was a hands-on father long before it became in vogue, spending countless hours taking his children on nature walks, to the airport to watch planes land, and to construction sites to watch heavy machinery transform the landscape. Friday nights always meant a trip to the Racine Public Library and Saturdays were usually spent watching Sci-Fi matinees at the Riverside Theatre.
His greatest joy was spending time with his grandchildren where he was able to attend their many sporting events, graduations from high school and college, marriages, and see great-grandchildren welcomed into their families. The “little ones” as he called them were the pinnacle of his well-lived life.
He was a long time member of Jehovah’s Witnesses and received much comfort and love from his extended religious family.
Survivors include his wife; daughter, Leslie (Lynn) Ludtke; grandchildren, Nathan (Lindsey) Ludtke, Jonathan (Heidi) Ludtke, Kathryn (Deandre) Hilson, Allyson (Justin) Nunez; great-grandchildren, Halle, Jackson, Gloria, Cora, Minna, Tessa, Evan and Arthur; his sister, Shirley Ruh; brother, Donald Lazarus; and many nieces, nephews and cousins.
He was further preceded in death by his only son, David Peter Lazarus, and his brother, Charles Lazarus.
Services are Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 7:30 p.m., at Schuette-Daniels Funeral Home, 625 Browns Lake Drive, Burlington. Visitation for family and friends is Feb. 15, from 4:30 p.m. until the time of service, at the funeral home. A private burial is Thursday, Feb. 16, in Rochester Cemetery.
The family extends many heartfelt thanks to the excellent caregivers and medical staff at the Wisconsin Veteran’s Home, Union Grove, who made the last four years of Arthur’s life most comfortable. The family suggests memorials in Arthur’s name to this fine facility.
Well-wishers can visit www.danielsfamilyfuneral.com.
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