Alfred W. Paschke

Alfred Wayne Paschke, 83, passed away peacefully on June 29, 2014, with his loving family by his side.

Born in Ephraim, Wisconsin, on August 29, 1930, Wayne attended a one-room school house in Ephraim and graduated from Gibraltar High School in Fish Creek. Following graduation, he began employment in his father's drilling and blasting business. Always a dedicated worker, Wayne mastered his profession and held the highest blasting license in the State of Wisconsin, which was unlimited and unrestricted. Not only did his work encompass bridges, smokestacks and underwater blasting, but he was the only demolition expert in the state to successfully implode buildings.

In 1951, Wayne was drafted into the Army and served in Korea as a Corporal. Upon his discharge in 1953, he returned to Ephraim and resumed his former position in the family business. Six years later, Wayne purchased the company, married for the first time and attended classes at UW-Milwaukee. He relocated to Green Bay in 1978 and, in 1983, married Georgia, a lovely Greek woman who was ever at and on his side in everything he did. Wayne retired from his drilling and blasting business in 1995, ever maintaining a special place in his heart for Door County and especially Ephraim.

Wayne's family includes a son, Charles "Cappy" Paschke and two daughters, Sarah (John) Cromell and Jody Paschke, as well as two step-daughters, Maria Carlton and Helen (Mark) Burish. Together, he and Georgia were proud grandparents to seven treasured grandchildren, Evan (Kelly), Jessica (Danny), Adam, Nikki, Christopher, Lars and Leif, and one great-granddaughter, Holland. He was preceded in death by his parents and two sisters.

Wayne served for several decades as an elder and trustee of three Moravian churches. He also leaves a great legacy through his untiring Masonic and Shrine service. His Masonic history began in 1955 when he was raised as a Master Mason at Henry Baird Lodge #211 in Sturgeon Bay, serving as Worshipful Master in 1960. After moving to Green Bay, he took a dual membership in Des Peres Lodge #85 and served as Worshipful Master in 1983 and 1984. He also was a member of Daylight Lodge #360 and held an honorary membership in Washington Lodge #21.

In 1962, Wayne joined the Scottish Rite Valley of Green Bay where he served as Commander in Chief of the Consistory in 1990. Most recently, he was a Trustee and Senior Warden of the Council of Princes of Jerusalem. In 2000, Wayne received the Meritorious Service award from Scottish Rite and in September, 2003, was coroneted as a 33rd degree Mason, in St. Louis, Missouri, a prestigious designation achieved by only a handful throughout the country. He also was a member of York Rite Council Chapter and Commandery.

Wayne began his Shrine affiliation at Tripoli Shrine in 1966 and became a charter member of Beja in 1985, where he served as Potentate in 1995. Devoted to supporting the Shrine Children's Hospitals, Wayne took on numerous roles, including Circus Chairman, Parade Marshall and Past President of the Green Bay Shrine Club. To that end, he also participated in several key groups: Double Enders; Vets of Valor; Super Cycle; Cuisine Unit; Nicolet Council Red Cross of Constantine; and Royal Order of Jesters Court #197; and was a member of the Tripoli Air Corps.

A Memorial Service will take place at 11 am, Saturday, July 19, 2014, at West Side Moravian Church in Green Bay, officiated by Rev. Marian Boyle. Wayne's Masonic and Shrine brothers will also honor him with a brief presentation.

In lieu of other expressions of sympathy, donations may be made to the Shrine Children's Hospitals in Chicago, Illinois, or Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The family extends their heartfelt gratitude to the doctors and staff at Aurora BayCare Medical Center, the Oddfellow Home and to Val, Carolyn and their colleagues at Aurora Visiting Nurses for the tender and compassionate care they provided to Wayne.