Obituaries

Madison – Reverend Father Cyril O. “Cy” Weisensel went to meet his Lord and Savior on Wednesday, October 26, 2022, at the age of 81 years, at Sunset Ridge Memory Care in Jefferson, Wisconsin. He was born on October 11, 1941, to Frederick and Lucille (Duscheck) Weisensel in Columbus, WI. He attended St. Joseph’s School in Fort Atkinson, Queen of Apostle’s Seminary in Madison, and St. Francis Seminary in Milwaukee where he received his BA and MA degrees.

Bishop Cletus F. O’Donnell ordained Fr. Cy to the Catholic Priesthood on May 20, 1967, at St. Raphael Cathedral in Madison.

His first assignment was an associate pastor at St. Henry, Watertown. He also served at St. John Vianney, Janesville; St. John the Baptist, Waunakee; and St. William, Janesville where he was on the faculty of Beloit Catholic High School. In 1982 he was appointed pastor of St. Francis de Sales in Hazel Green linked with St. Patrick Parish, Benton and St. Joseph’s Church and School, Sinsinawa, where he served for 29 years. He was a Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus “Faithful Friar” of the Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli Assembly of Southwestern Wisconsin.

He was a coach for many of the youth sport teams in the parishes he served and held a CDL license to drive them to away games, and to religious retreats, as well as to annual trips to Great America and Noah’s Ark waterpark.

His hobbies include the outdoors, and he enjoyed trips with his five brothers camping in the Canadian Boundary Waters, sightseeing in the glaciers of AK and hiking in the mountains of CO. He kept a boat on the Mississippi River for many years and enjoyed giving friends and family tours of the area. In the fall he liked to deer hunt with friends, and in the winter, he enjoyed snowmobiling. He was a volunteer fire fighter for many years and a captain in the Hazel Green Fire Dept.

Fr. Cy enjoyed travels to Europe and Asia and was privileged to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed on Holy Thursday. A very special event and honor was when he concelebrated the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass with St. Pope John Paul II at the 1993 World Youth Day in Denver CO.

In June 2017 a Golden Jubilee Mass of Thanksgiving was concelebrated by priests of the area, along with Bishop Robert Morlino, at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Madison in honor of his 50 years in the priesthood, with a dinner held in his honor also.

He was a very special brother and uncle to his family and will be deeply missed by them.

Fr. Cy is survived by his siblings, Bruce (Kathy) Weisensel, Jackson, MI; Wil (Susan) Weisensel, Jefferson; Mark (Rose) Weisensel, Oshkosh; G. Nick (Laur) Weisensel, Savage, MN; Marlene (Paul) Buechel, Rochester, NY; Jeanette (Gilbert) Benoy, Fort Atkinson; Dolores (Harvey) Taylor, Fort Atkinson, and Mary (Donald) Sheldon, Beaufort, NC; and a sister-in-law, Sue Weisensel, Racine. He is also survived by nephews and nieces, Paul (Victoria) Buechel, Bruce Buechel, Laura (Brian) Norton, Ellen (Devon) Whyte, Marcy (Dave) Palmer, Gwen (Anders Utterstrom) Benoy, Beth (Dave) Van Schoyck, Brian (Tammy) Benoy, Dave (Courtney) Weisensel, Dan (Tracee) Weisensel, Darin (Jenny) Weisensel, Andrew Weisensel, Theresa (David) Weber, Diane (Dana) Presley, Sharon (Dave) Jahnke, Donnie (Jessica) Taylor, Tobias Weisensel, Brandon Weisensel, Nick Weisensel, Christina Weisensel and Evan Weisensel; and many great nieces and nephews and other relatives and friends.

He was predeceased by his parents, Frederick and Lucille Weisensel; siblings, Hugh Weisensel and Geraldine Vande Zande; and a nephew, Dan Buechel.

Fr. Cy was quoted as saying, “I hope that we, the people of God, will continue to always grow and truly experience God’s awesome love and joy, peace and presence in our lives daily; as we proudly live as God’s special people, experiencing His grace and spirit active with and among us.”

The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 1660 Endl Blvd., Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, on Monday, October 31, 2022, at 12:30 pm. The Most Reverend Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison, will celebrate the Holy Mass, with The Reverend Father Bart Timmerman as homilist. Visitation at St. Joseph Catholic Church will be held on Monday, October 31st, before the Funeral Mass, from 10 am to 12:30 pm. Burial will take place at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery, Fort Atkinson, immediately following the Funeral Mass. A luncheon will be served at St. Joseph Catholic Church following the burial.

To view and sign this guestbook, please visit: www.ryanfuneralservice.com.

Ryan Funeral Home & Cremation Services 5701 Odana Road 608-274-1000