Marie Kranjec

90 years of adventures, ambition & zest for life

Our mother, the spunky, vivacious, beautiful Marie, Mici, Mary Vlasic-Kranjec, 90, met her Creator about 5 months ago on March 30, 2026 – 8 days following her 90th Birthday Bash Weekend in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Nearly all her family and extended family came to celebrate her. So, she passed on brimming with gratitude for God’s blessings in her own life and great pride and joy for her children, Cynthia & John, grandchildren Andrea, Lee, Nick, Andrew, and her four great-grandchildren George, Felix, Issa and Adam.

Hers was a life lived BIG! Born in Krška Vas, near Brežice, Slovenia on March 20, 1936, Marie was five when the Nazi soldier came to her family’s door, ordered them to evacuate, and put them in a cattle train car bound for Germany to work as forced labor for a farm there. Following WW2’s end she and her family lived in multiple Displaced Persons camps in Germany before emigrating to New Jersey. Her family then moved to the Slovenian St. Stephen’s Parish in Chicago where she met and married a fellow Slovenian immigrant, Bogomil, against her strict father’s wishes. She was a rebel! Her devoted and adventurous marriage lasted 53 years! They raised their family in Berwyn, Illinois but mostly in Deerfield, Illinois where they bought their first laundry/drycleaning business.

Ambitious and a feminist even before there was such a word, Marie worked in at least 9 different and interesting jobs until she was 86 years old. Her job at the Chicago main U.S. Post Office soda and candy counter landed her in feature photos in the Chicago Tribune in the mid-1950s. From selling red hots at Parkey’s on Roosevelt Ave in Berwyn to catering home parties on the North Shore of Chicago she loved to work and to have her own money to buy the extras and fun things. Early in her marriage she and her young family moved from Berwyn to a northern Italian small town near Slovenia for a family business opportunity. She so wanted to work there too but her mother-in-law, whose home she and her family were living in, forbade her to do so. Needless to say, Marie was very upset about that! Another BIG adventure!

Marie was a tremendous business partner with her husband, Bogie, being the people-person side to complement his skill set. Together they owned and worked at several laundry/drycleaners and motels in 3 states. At their first mom-and-pop motel Marie would regularly leave their living quarters, walk outside to a separate motel office in her nightclothes and robe to check in middle-of-the-night guests, in rain, shine or freezing weather!

Her greatest source of business pride was her final motel, The Travel Inn, in northern Indiana. She and Bogie transformed it from an eyesore to their jewel with help also from family. Along the way they made lots of friends and frequently celebrated with a drink at the Holiday Inn when the “Full” sign was put out.

At 57 she and Bogie retired from the motel business and moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin to be near their daughter and family. There she enjoyed countless hours of laughter and fun with her granddaughters, breaking ALL the rules.

Marie’s final job was as a crossing guard, helping school kids cross the street even while using a cane in subzero weather, often over ice patches. More adventure!

She was a true free spirit, saying YES to any idea or outing. She lived in positivity and always in the present. She loved to laugh and never took things too seriously. “Go with the flow” and “You have to love yourself” and “Don’t worry!” were favorite quotes. Her open-door policy made for endless visitors, and she always offered food and drink generously. However, she could be brutally frank, even impossible on occasion. She was nothing if not totally resilient—a true immigrant.

Marie’s greatest joy was loving her kids, grandkids and great-grandkids and seeing what fine people they grew to be. She was close to all her siblings, especially to her older sister, Reska, who she drove hours to see regularly. Together they sang Slovenian songs, cooked Slovenian dishes and shared I Love Lucy type adventures, such as the occasional wedding reception crashing!

She was a proud Slovenian Dolenka; naturally a great Slovenian cook and baker. She became a Green Bay celebrity when she gave strudel making classes. She basked in the limelight! Her passions were singing Slovenian songs and dancing the polka and the waltz. She worked hard to continue Slovenian traditions with her children, making sacrifices for them to attend Slovenian school and dance class for years. She loved Slovenian masses, dances and events at St. Stephen’s, Chicago, St. Mary’s, Lemont, IL and Triglav Park, Milwaukee, where she was known and loved. She was charming, flirtatious and a natural-born beauty.

Her determination and big spirit live on in those who she cheered on, nurtured and loved. Marie Vlasic Kranjec, you were truly a strong, spirited and adventurous woman. We promise to keep the legacy going with love, laughter and memories of you.

Živijo in počivaj v miru.