John Friedel

John M. Friedel, 78, of Green Bay, WI, passed away on Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024, at Aurora BayCare Medical Facility following a courageous battle with pneumonia and congestive heart failure.

John was born Oct. 11, 1945, in Fond du Lac, WI, the son of the late Norbert and Leone (Wood) Friedel. On August 17, 1968, he married his high school sweetheart, Jennifer (née Braun) Friedel.

After graduation from Saint Mary’s Spring Academy in Fond du Lac in 1963, John enlisted in the US Navy where he served as a submarine sonarman. He was selected for the Navy Enlisted Scientific Education Program and attended Marquette University. He graduated in 1972 with a mechanical engineering degree and was commissioned as an officer in the US Navy.

John started as a line officer on the USS Wahoo, a diesel submarine. In 1975, he switched designation to Supply Officer and served on both surface ships and shore duty in that role on both coasts of the United States and Hawaii. His final duty station was Bangor Submarine Base in Washington state where he retired in 1990 with the rank of Commander after 25 years of service.

John and Jennifer, with their 3 boys, returned home to Wisconsin and settled in Green Bay. John began his 2nd career as a Business Manager/Development Director at St. Mary’s Springs in Fond du Lac, Resurrection Parish and Salvation Army in Green Bay, and lastly St Mary’s Parish in Appleton. John and Jennifer have been active members of the Resurrection Parish since 1990.

John was a proud but humble man who loved his country and was honored to serve it. He attacked every endeavor with a hard work ethic, organization, and meticulous attention to detail. His generous nature and sense of humor was known and appreciated by his family and friends. John was an active member of the Military Officers Club of Northeast Wisconsin for over 30 years. He was a founding member of the organizational committee for the Fred White Veterans Memorial Golf Outing, which has raised funds to support veterans of Northeast Wisconsin since 2014. John enjoyed many music genres, was an avid reader, loved boating on Green Bay, and was a life-long Packers fan.

John will be missed by his loving wife of 55 years, Jennifer, and his sons Michael (Anna) of Kingston, WA, Gregory (Lara) of Green Bay and Christopher (Deb) of Bozeman, MT; his siblings Ron (Sandy) Friedel of Brown Deer, WI, Julie (Tom) Petrie of Fond du Lac; his grandchildren Connor and Cameron Friedel, David Friedel, and step-grandchildren Cooper and Carter Fellows; sister-in-law Kathy (Bob) Phillips of Fond du Lac, sister-in-law Barb Emrath of Lisle, IL, and sister-in-law Diane Friedel of Silver Spring, MD; many nieces, nephews, extended family members and countless friends.

John is preceded in death by his parents, brothers Richard and William, infant sister Mary, Jennifer’s parents, Leo and Ruth Braun, sister-in-law Marlene Friedel, brother-in-law Art Emrath, and grandparents, aunts and uncles.

Visitation will take place Monday, March 4th at Resurrection Catholic Parish, 333 Hilltop Dr, Green Bay, WI 54301 from 9 to 10:45am followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00am concelebrated by Fr. Tom Reynebeau and Fr. Paul Demuth. Full military honors will be accorded after mass.

An additional visitation will be held on Tuesday, March 5th at Calvary Cemetery Chapel, 686 Fond du Lac Ave, Fond du Lac, WI 54935 from 11:00am until the time of prayer service at noon, followed by burial.

John’s family would like to recognize and extend gratitude to the Aurora ICU-2 staff for their compassionate care and support of Dad and his family. They also request memorial contributions be made to the American Diabetes Association or the American Heart Association in John’s name.