Stanley Heffernan

Madison Wisconsin-May 19, 2022

Stanley Maurice Heffernan

Stanley was born September 29, 1923, in Norwalk, Wisconsin. He was the son of Mabel (McGary) and Oliver Heffernan. His father came to Norwalk from Platteville to be its first high school Principal. His mother was the first-grade teacher and the granddaughter of the original land grant owner on which the village was settled. After several years of teaching Oliver became president of the newly formed Farmers State Bank. He held this position until his death when Stan was only 13 years old.

Stan was the youngest of five children. He led a mostly carefree childhood typical of small towns, and going to a small school offered many opportunities. He was active in the school Basketball, baseball, and track teams. He also enjoyed participation in the band/orchestra, class plays, school paper staff and debate team. Hunting, fishing, and hiking consumed the balance of his time.

After High School, he attended Carroll College for a time until Uncle Sam decided it was time to enter the Army via Fort Sheridan. Later, he entered the Army Specialized Training Program at Carleton College in MN.  After several subsequent stateside assignments, he was discharged at Fort McCoy WI and entered the University of Wisconsin Madison in the fall of 1946. In his final year of his Chemical Engineering degree, he was recruited and entered Oscar Mayer’s college intern program. He also got a job waiting tables at Micky’s Dairy Bar, which is still across from Camp Randall Stadium today.

With a year of school remaining, Stan and Marian Rasmussen were married on December 26, 1948 in Norwalk. In January of 1950 Stan graduated with a BS degree in Chemical Engineering. He immediately went to work full time in Oscar Meyers’ Quality Assurance Dept and spent time as its Quality Assurance Manager in Davenport, IA and Los Angeles CA before returning to Madison. He retired from Oscar Mayer as a Vice President after 39 years of passionate service.

Stan and Marian were active in their church, the Orchard Ridge United Church of Christ. Stan was also active in Kiwanis. In 1974 they purchased a cabin on Fence Lake in northern Wisconsin. The cabin was part of a resort where they had vacationed the prior 13 years. The time, effort and resources put into this family cabin, and the great joy it brought his family was a source of great pride for Stan. A wonderful grandfather, Stan’s carefree childhood provided rich subject matter for stories and play with his grandchildren, whom he cherished.

Stanley is preceded in death by his wife Marian and daughter Kristine. He is survived by son Larry and Wife Anne (Madison); son Chuck and wife Wendy (Minden Nevada), grandsons Kyle (Valencia, CA), Scott (Valencia, CA) and Jake (Virgin, UT); Son in Law Ric McGrew (Middleton), granddaughter Carrie McGrew (Minneapolis); and grandson Ryan McGrew (Denmark).

Madison - Stanley M. Heffernan, age 98, passed away on May 19, 2022.  Stanley was born September 29, 1923, in Norwalk, Wisconsin.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 8, 2022, at Orchard Ridge United Church of Christ, 1501 Gilbert Rd., Madison.  A time of gathering will take place following the service.

Email Chuck Heffernan at ChuckHef@icloud.com for notification. Donations in memory of Stanley Heffernan’s life will be gratefully accepted by Agrace Hospice who supported Stan and his family.

Cress Funeral Service

3610 Speedway Rd.

Madison, WI 53705

608-238-3434