Roger Wunsch

Roger Wunsch, 79, Wausau, passed away on January 1, 2022 at Aspirus Wausau Hospital.

He was born on August 2, 1942 in Wausau to the late Russell and Josephine (Wiesman) Wunsch . After graduating from Wausau Senior High in 1961, Roger proudly served in the U.S. Navy for four years as an electrician. Roger cherished the opportunity to take the “Honor Flight” to Washington D.C. later in life in 2016.

Upon returning home from service, Roger worked at Wisconsin Public Service Corp. – Weston Power Plant as an electrician where he retired from in 2000.

He married the love of his life and main squeeze Cheryl (Sherry) Nelson on April 1, 1967 in Wausau, and enjoyed 54 years together. They were blessed with three children; Patrick (Jessica) of Merrill, Chris (Anne) of Wausau and Vicki of St. Paul, MN.

Roger loved spending time at their cottage in Tomahawk and making many memories over the years with family and friends. He loved being with his children and grandchildren. He was a great story teller and often talked about his days in the Navy. He loved telling stories about “fighting off the sharks” and had the scars to prove it!

Roger took several memorable trips with his family throughout his life including an unforgettable trip to St. Petersburg, Russia where he partook in the adoption of two of his grandchildren.

Roger dedicated his life to serving others including his involvement with his children in Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.. He was a Webelo Leader, Assistant Scoutmaster and Scoutmaster in Troop 427. He received various awards throughout his years of service. Roger served on the Catholic Committee on Scouting and was a longtime member of the Prayer Fellowship of Christian Scouters.

In addition to his wife and children, Roger is survived by his sister Carol (Ken) Kropp, his grandchildren Andy, Grace, Emily, Sergei, Roman, Ksusha and Katya, four great grandchildren, his brother-in-law Danny Nelson, sister-law-law, Debbie (Mike) Krueger and many nieces and nephews.

In addition to his parents, Roger was preceded in death by his sisters Rita (Wayne) Kroeplin and Kathy (Bob) Holbrook.

The family would like to to thank the compassionate staff at Mount View Care Center and Dr. Swe and staff at Aspirus Wausau Hospital.

A Celebration of Roger’s life will be held on Saturday, January 8, 2022 at 12:00 noon at Brainard Funeral Home's Wausau Chapel, 522 Adams Street, Wausau. Visitation will begin at 10:00 am. Roger's daughter, Rev. Vicki Wunsch, and nephew, Fr. Steve Kropp, will officiate the service. Burial with military honors at Gate of Heaven Cemetery will be held in the Spring of 2022.

The family requests that attendees wear a mask to comply with the COVID protocols. For those unable to attend the service, a livestream of the service will be available on brainardfuneral.com.