Thomas Emil Brandenburg

Thomas E. Brandenburg, 88, of Kronenwetter died Tuesday, February 13, 2024. He was born September 15, 1935, in Wausau, the son of Emil and Lorinda (Gralow) Brandenburg. On September 18, 1965, he married Carol Rebernick of Mosinee at St. John’s Lutheran Church.

Tom was a man of many talents beginning with his time in the Army Reserves. He was stationed at Fort Lewis in Washington State as a cook. When he finished his time there, he began working for UPS in Milwaukee. When the Wausau Center opened, he transferred and became a semi-driver and drove for 35 years. During those UPS days, Tom loved to bring laughter to the lounge with VHS’s of Beavis and Butthead. Over those 35 years, Tom received many awards for his commitment to the company with his punctuality. On February 3, 1978, Tom and Carol happily welcomed their son, Brent. Tom and Brent loved to go to CWA for lunches and watch the air traffic. When he retired in 1996, he cut lawns and did snow removal. He loved to be active and outdoors and passed his love of landscaping and maintenance on to Brent. His outdoor passion extended to gardening, beekeeping, honey-making, and spending time at Tom and Carol’s cottage on Little Horsehead Lake. He loved water skiing and teaching Brent and his friends to ski, and later his grandkids. He also took care of hooking slimy worms and removing floppy bluegills for his four grandkids. Together, Tom and the grandkids spent hours catching ‘Legendary’ frogs and giggling on their campouts. His vivaciousness will be missed by the many lives he touched.

Survivors include his wife, Carol; son, Brent (Meghan); four grandchildren, Harper, Xander, Bridger, and Ryder; two sisters, Peggy Chagnon, and Susan (James) Randall; godson Craig Randall, niece and nephews. Besides his parents, he was preceded in death by his first son, Brian, sisters, Ellen Erickson and Alice Robertson, and brother-in-law, Kenneth Chagnon.

A Memorial Service will take place at 11:00 AM on Thursday, February 22, 2024, at St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Wausau.  Pastor Chris Ewan will officiate.  Visitation will be from 10:00 AM until the time of service, all at the church.  Beste Funeral Home, Mosinee is assisting the family with arrangements.  Online condolences can be directed to the family at www.bestefh.com.

The family would like to thank the following friends for their help; Mark and Betty Martino, John and Laverne Rondeu, Don Clark, Don and Sue Schmidt, Bob Bender, Jean Bohman, Mary Hartman, Heather from Inner Peace, Georgia and Jamie Johns, Pastor Chris Ewan, and the ER doctors and nurses at Aspirus Hospital.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in Tom’s name to St. Paul’s United Church of Christ or ADRC at 2600 Stewart Ave., Ste 25, Wausau, WI, 54401.