Earl Fritzke

Earl "Tiny" Fritzke age 81 passed away peacefully at his home in Stoughton of natural causes on September 3rd 2013. Tiny, as he was always called, lived a very full life. He was a husband, father, friend and carpenter touching hundreds of lives along the way. He was born on September 5th 1931 to Paul and Ada (Mohr) Fritzke of Edgerton WI. Tiny graduated from Edgerton High School in 1949 and served in the Army-Company "C" 84th Engineer Construction Battalion from 1951 to 1953. Returning home to Edgerton WI., he continued his work as a carpenter.
He was united in marriage to Berdette E. Wiesspfenning from Elroy WI., on November 6th 1965. On April 24th 1970 their beloved son David J. Fritzke was born. David was the love of their lives and the three of them made many a journey around the country in their camper truck. After Berdette's passing in 1996, Tiny and David continued to travel the U.S. and overseas to Taiwan and Korea. They were an inseparable pair until the unexpected passing of David in 2008.
After his release from the army in 1953 he continued his career in the building trades, teaming with Ralph Bradley from Edgerton and later with Doug Stolen, working thru the lumber yard in Stoughton WI. In 1965, the three of them started BFS Corp. of Stoughton WI. BFS thrived, becoming a premier building company. In 1979 Doug Stolen bought out Ralph and Tiny.
Tiny then began a long legacy of coordinating and constructing many projects for the expanding Stoughton Trailers operation. He was in charge of major building projects in Stoughton, Evansville, and Brodhead for them.
Tiny will always be remembered by the way he was truly interested in people's lives. Many young carpenters will cherish the mentoring and training Tiny provided. He cut a wide path, always taking time to share a little story or laugh a little as he joked with many. He loved to travel around, checking in with the many places where friends were. He always had advice for the young people and showed us all how to be a wonderful friend. His smile and his booming laugh will be missed by many.
Tiny is survived by a sister June (Fritzke) Jezeski, cousins, nieces, nephews, and many dear friends. He is preceded in death by his parents, wife Berdette, son David, and Sister Ethel Mae (Fritzke) Geske. Special thanks to Sandy Thompson, Kelly Buss, Deb Schiefelbein, Dawn Gunsolus, Cindy Barber, Lori Duane, Dawn Killian and Mia Martin, for the special love and care they provided Tiny that allowed him to stay at home in the later years.
Funeral service and a celebration of Tiny's life will be held at 6:30 pm, Tuesday September 10th 2013 at Cress Funeral Home, 206 W. Prospect St. Stoughton WI. Visitation will be held starting at 3:00 pm until the time of the service. Burial will take place at 11am on Wednesday September 11th 2013 at St. Luke's Cemetery in Elroy WI. To memorialize his wife and son's love of education, Tiny has directed that a Fritzke Family Scholarship Trust Fund be established. The trust shall be used for scholarships toward payment of post high school education for members of the graduating class of Stoughton Senior High School.

We will all be left with a hole in our hearts but with many stories to share. To a carpenter finally at rest we will miss you. Rest in Peace our beloved "Tiny".

Cress Funeral Service
206 W. Prospect Street
Stoughton, WI 53589
(608) 873-9244