Viola Gutzmann

Viola “Vi” (nee Schumann) Gutzmann, 94, of Hartland, passed away at Crossroads Care Center of Pewaukee on Thursday, August 29, 2024.

Vi was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on March 30,1930, to the late Agnes (nee Thate) and William Schumann. She was one of four daughters who worked on the family vegetable farm. 

As a young woman Vi became a live-in nanny for a family in Milwaukee. She married Arthur R. Gutzmann, Jr., and they raised two daughters in Milwaukee until their divorce on June 16, 1976. 

Vi moved to Menomonee Falls and worked for many years in laundry at Luther Manor Nursing Home in Wauwatosa. She was the life of the hallway, always carrying on loving conversations with each of the residents as she delivered their perfectly pressed, washed and folded clothes. She gave the residents a sense of dignity, laughter and friendship. 

After she retired, Vi found many groups, projects and of course family, especially her grandchildren, to dedicate her boundless amounts of energy to. She always found a reason to dress up in a theme or put on a costume, had a green thumb to boot, and became the unofficial group coordinator of her senior apartment complex arranging endless parties and outings. When she wasn’t planning a party or watching baseball, you could find Vi playing bingo, dart ball, and Wii Bowling throughout various community groups within the Lake Country area. Vi also volunteered weekly, sorting and hanging clothes at Lake County Caring of Hartland. Her zest for life never seemed to end, as she often helped watch her great grandchildren on a weekly basis. Each day she spent with them, had to be filled with activities from squirt gun fights, to blowing bubbles and having tea parties. Vi “never wanted to grow up” and always wanted everyone to gather, have fun and of course laugh.

Vi is survived by her children Gail Charney of Pewaukee, Gwen (Steve) Mottl of Oconomowoc, grandchildren Thomas Mottl, Jennifer (Brandon) Conley, great-grandchildren Emily and Gabriel Conley, nieces Diane (Charlie) Daub, Marilyn Boettcher, nephews Richard Numrich and William Numrich. 

 She is preceded in death by her sisters Marion Giese, Lillian Sutton, and Betty Numrich.

 A private family committal will be held at the Village of Hartland Cemetery.