Marlene A. Wachtel

Marlene A. Wachtel (Wendorff) passed away at Riverview Hospital on January 2 after a long and full life. She is remembered as a woman of  great faith and strength. She was a voracious reader with a love of travel.

Born in Sparta, WI on April 24, 1932, she and her late husband Ken lived in Chicago, New Jersey, and Waterloo, Belgium, raising three sons before retiring near their family in Westfield, IN.

As a young woman, Marlene moved often, eventually settling in Chicago where she lived with her widowed mother. She was active in Job’s Daughters where she met her husband. She was a  graduate of Austin High School in Chicago, IL, where she made many life-long friends. She and Ken were married in 1953. They were married for 62 years until his death.

While Marlene was primarily a wife and mother, she was very active on the Kendall Park, NJ Volunteer First Aid Squad, as well as a CPR trainer for the American Heart Association. She also served as the personal secretary to the South Brunswick, NJ Police Chief, before the family moved overseas.

A devout Episcopalian, she helped found All Saints Church in Ohain, Belgium, and was a member of St Michael’s in Noblesville. She was active in Faith Alive and Curcillo, and was a Daughter of the King, of which she was very proud.

She is preceded by her beloved husband, Kenneth, her father and mother, Arnold and LaVeta, and a sister, Dawn. Three sons, David, Kevin (Robin), and Roger (Jeanette), five grandchildren, Thomas, Kaitlin, Benjamin, Joshua, and Caroline (Jesse Barnes), and a great grandchild, Malachi Barnes, survive.

Arrangements were entrusted to Flanner Buchanan – Hamilton Memorial Park. Services will be for immediate family. A memorial service is planned after Covid restrictions ease. Online condolences may be shared by visiting flannerbuchanan.com.