Kay "Betsy" Strommen

Kay “Betsy” Elizabeth Strommen, age 73 resident of Racine, WI passed away peacefully at her residence surrounded by her family and caregivers on November 25, 2024. Kay was born on May 28, 1951, in Racine, WI to the late Anton (Edna) Homolka. She lived in Racine where she graduated from Park High School in 1969. She attended college at UW Parkside in Kenosha, WI where she studied both psychology and sociology. Kay worked as a social worker for several years before changing careers to work at S.C. Johnson Wax for over 20 years until retirement. She was united in marriage to the love of her life, Thomas “Tommy” Strommen on May 27, 1977; and welcomed her young stepchildren Cheryl, Tim, and Cindy with open arms. Kay enjoyed sharing her creative spirit and hobbies of music, theatre, arts, cooking, literature, travel, and languages with Tommy and the kids over the years. A typical Saturday afternoon could include painting outside in the woods with canvas and oil paints, creating a skit to perform later that night with props and costumes, or making homemade pasta & sausage from scratch. There was no limit to what she would do to teach her kids and grandkids to be creative. Kay was a self-taught scholar of many languages, music, arts and literature. She was always reading and when she finished the books from the library she had for the week, she would open an encyclopedia. We are pretty sure she eventually made it through the entire set! She took this knowledge to travel and explore the world with her husband Tommy which inspired her to start writing about their adventures. She also wrote several novels which she eventually planned to publish. One of her favorite and most frequent places to travel was to the Czech Republic to visit her relatives and friends, who will miss her dearly. When she wasn’t traveling abroad, Kay and Tommy enjoyed searching for the best fishing holes here in the States. They were not only looking for trophy fish, but also for the quantity! Fish was frequently enjoyed at every meal, but especially when shared with family. Kay is survived by her children: Cheryl (Randy) Loppnow, Tim (Jodene) Strommen, and Cindy Strommen; grandchildren: Joshua Hansen, Tanner Strommen, and Tucker (Caitlyn) Strommen; siblings: Tom (Cori) Watson, Dennis (Liz) Homolka, Karen Karpinski; brothers and sisters in-law: Sandy (Joe) Fliess, Daniel (Joy) Strommen, Todd (Becky) Strommen, Sue (Jim) Koloske, Becky Limbach, Linda Strommen, Lurene Coles and many special nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. She was preceded in death by her husband Thomas Strommen; her parents; her in-laws Alger (Ella) Strommen and Lucille Sadler, brother and sister in-laws: Edward (Sue) Strommen, John Strommen, Jim Coles and her many cats all named Kitty. A special thanks to her in-home caregivers Tom, Vicka, Theresa and Gentiva Hospice; and the numerous healthcare professionals who compassionately provided assistance to her in the last year. Visitation will be held at Sturino Funeral Home on Friday December 6, 2024, from 3-5 p.m. A private burial will be held at Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery on Friday December 13, 2024. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to the Humane Society wihumane.org; or Racine Public Library.

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Kay "Betsy" Strommen

May 28, 1951 - November 25, 2024