Audrey Mae (Reis) Weihaupt

Audrey Mae (Reis) Weihaupt          

Waunakee/Evergreen, CO   

Jan. 8, 1932 – Dec. 11, 2023

Audrey Mae (Reis) Weihaupt, 91, passed away on December 11, 2023.  She was born January 8, 1932, in the Town of Westport, Wisconsin on the Reis Brothers family farm at the northwest corner of Highways K and Q to Agnes (Fleiner) and Henry Reis.  Audrey had a wonderful life filled with good friends, significant accomplishments, and world travel.  She will be dearly missed by family and friends alike. 

Audrey graduated from Waunakee High School in 1950 where she distinguished herself as the class valedictorian.  Shortly after graduating she began her professional career working at the State Capitol for the Department of Agriculture. A new opportunity presented to work for the United States Armed Forces Institute (USAFI), Department of Defense, located on the Capital Square.  Her job started with clerical responsibilities but within a few short months, she was promoted to secretary for the Director of the Department of Education. 

Audrey lived at home on the family farm for several years following high school and then moved to Madison, living on West Gorham Street with three other young women.  She attended the University of Wisconsin, taking courses at night as she held down her full-time job.

In May of 1960, a chance meeting on Glenway Golf Course in Madison would forever change her life.  It was on the fairway that Audrey met John G. (Jack) Weihaupt.  Theirs was a whirlwind romance and less than a year after they first met, Audrey and Jack were married on January 28, 1961.  They continued to live in Madison and both continued to work at USAFI, as Jack pursued a doctorate degree in geophysics.  Theirs was a marriage of love, partnership and respect.  They were inseparable.  Their life together included traveling around the globe as Jack attended science conferences. 

In the early 1960’s Audrey began working as a service representative with the Social Security Administration’s Madison office.  She would continue working for the SSA for over 40 years in four different cities.  As Jack continued to pursue his academic career, they moved from Madison to three other Cities.  In 1973 they moved to Indianapolis, Indiana where Jack took an academic dean position while Audrey was able to continue her work with SSA.   In 1976, Audrey was promoted to the position of Operations Analyst, a position she would hold until her retirement.  In 1976, Audrey also completed her bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Indiana University with honors, working on it part time for over 15 years. 

In 1978 Audrey and Jack moved to Las Gatos, California where Jack had been named dean of the graduate school and vice president of the University Foundation at San Jose State University.  Audrey was again able to land another job with the SSA.   In 1982 they moved again, this time to Golden, Colorado where Jack accepted a position as dean of the graduate school and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Colorado in Denver.  Due to Audrey’s exceptional work performance, she once again landed an increasingly responsible position with SSA working out of the Downtown Denver office. 

Audrey and Jack built their dream home on a ridge top in Evergreen, Colorado in 1995. Audrey supervised the construction and came to be known by the construction company’s crew as the “little general.”  There they would spend another 19 years together, managing their enterprise and taking care of the ponderosas.  Each morning Jack would ask her, “what is the POD (plan of the day)?”  She always had one.   Following Jack’s death in 2014, Audrey spent the next seven years managing the “enterprise” by herself.  In November of 2019, she moved back to Wisconsin.

Audrey is survived by 12 nieces and nephews, 17 great-nephews and great nieces, six great-great- nieces and nephews, and seven godchildren.  She was preceded in death by her husband Jack, her parents Agnes and Henry Reis, her sister Shirley (Murphy) Speth and two brothers Wesley and Roger. 

A funeral mass will be held at St. John’s the Baptist Catholic Church in Waunakee on Tuesday December 19 at 11:00 a.m. with a visitation from 10:00 a.m. to the time of the service.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Audrey’s name to the Wounded Warriors Project. 

The family would like to extend a special thank you to the staff at All Saints Assisted Living, All Saints Memory Care and Agrace Hospice.  We know Audrey held a special place in your hearts, due to the care she received, and the beautiful smile she shared with each of you.

                                                                   Winn-Cress Funeral Home

                                                                             5785 Hwy Q

                                                                          Waunakee, WI