Rita A. Seering

Rita A. Seering passed away on Saturday, December 10, 2016. She was born February 3, 1923 to Isaac and Ella Belongea in Kaukauna Wisconsin. The eldest girl of thirteen children she learned early in life to cook, bake and sew. She was also blessed with a beautiful singing voice and performed with dance bands during the 1940's. During a break at one performance she met an Army Private, Bob Seering sitting in the audience just prior to his WWII deployment to Europe. A letter-writing romance blossomed between the two and they were married September 7, 1946. The first of their ten children was born a year later and the family eventually moved to the upper peninsula of Michigan then to New Lisbon, Hortonville and Green Bay (Allouez) Wisconsin, following Bob's music teaching career. Rita was the ultimate stay-at-home mom, cooking, cleaning, baking, sewing, balancing the budget, managing skirmishes ("wait till your father gets home"), treating her children's various scrapes, cuts and bruises and making sure everyone was ready for school with breakfast and brown bag lunches.

Bob and Rita lived a wonderful 67 years together gathering many friends and memories along the way. They were both integral members of the St. Matthew Church Choir for many years, organizing the choir and singing mass on Sunday mornings and holidays including Christmas Eve and the annual choir party which lasted until the wee hours of Christmas morning. She shared her time, treasure and talent throughout her life as a Eucharistic Minister at Bellin Hospital, helping at the Salvatorian Mission, and providing monetary support to numerous charities and worthwhile causes. She was an extraordinary seamstress and spent countless hours at her sewing and knitting machines making beautiful clothing for family members and customers. Once she discovered the computer could "talk" with her sewing machine she shared her seamstress skills teaching others at Winn's Sewing Center.

Once her children were grown, Rita took up the game of golf and helped organize and manage the Woodside Couples League. She enjoyed cross country skiing and travelling with Bob on road trips to Colorado, Florida, Georgia and Texas visiting family and friends along the way.


Rita was an accomplished bridge player and won a lot more games of cribbage than she lost. Her "Oh Sheitzan" skills were legendary and she delighted in taking more tricks than her competitors - usually her family members. She was also a Milwaukee Braves and Brewers fan, loved watching the Green Bay Packers and Wisconsin Badgers - often with a beer or a light "booze and water".
Rita was preceded in death by her beloved husband Bob, daughter Patricia, granddaughter Christine Sharpe, son-in-law Mark DeWees and daughter-in-law Susan Acheson, her sister Joan Lesselyong and Belongea brothers Harold, Loyal, Jerome, Dick, Eddie and Fr. David.
Survivors include her sons and daughters: Bob (Maureen) Seering, Linda (Al) Mezzoni, Tom Seering, Timm Seering, Deb DeWees, Mary (Bob) Bodmer, David (Lori) Seering, Barbara (Jeff) Van Essen and Michael (Kim) Seering; 19 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren and one great-great grandchild, her brothers Myron Belongea and George Belongea, sisters Marion Rife, Ruth Vanderloop and Sylvia Robinson.

Family and friends may gather on Wednesday, December 14, 2016, at Newcomer Funeral Home, 340 S. Monroe Ave., Green Bay, from 4:00pm until 7:00pm with a parish prayer service at 6:30pm. Visitation will continue on Thursday, December 15, 2016at St. Matthew Catholic Church, 130 St. Matthew St., Green Bay, from 10:00 am until 11:00 am. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at the church on Thursday at 11:00 am with Fr. Robert Kabot officiating. Entombment will be at the Allouez Chapel Mausoleum. A very special Thank You to caregivers daughter Mary, son Timm and to Mary Ann Gooding Rita's sister in Christ who brought Our Lord to her weekly. Thank you also to the caring staff members at Heritage Gardens and New Perspective Senior Living.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been established in Rita's name.