Bertha “Bert” Theresa Lorenz
Beloved mother, mother-in-Law, grandmother, great grandmother, sister and friend, Bertha “Bert” Theresa Lorenz, 85, of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, passed away peacefully on Saturday, May 10, 2025, at Harbor Haven Health and Rehabilitation.
Bert was born August 2, 1939, the twelfth of fifteen children, to James (Wensel) Frank Samek and Mary Agnes (Zastoupil) Samek in Dickenson, North Dakota. When she was a toddler, the family moved to a farm in Wimbledon, N.D. which she described as a fun place for adventure and mischief, offering her many fond memories.
She attended Dover Township Grade School for first grade, then St. James Academy, a boarding school in New Rockford, N.D., for second grade through her sophomore year of High School. She graduated in 1958 from Wimbledon High School. Later that year she entered an R.N. nursing program through the Mercy School of Nursing in Valley City, N.D. She graduated in 1961; she was one of the first to leave the farm to attend higher education. Later in life she went back to school and received her bachelor’s degree in nursing in 1987 through Jamestown College in Jamestown, N.D.
Bert worked various areas of nursing including teaching at the junior college in Devils Lake, N.D., was a director at the Lake Region Nursing Home in Devils Lake, N.D. and later worked for the VA Medical Center in Fargo, N.D.
During her nursing school years in Devils Lake, Bert met Lawrence “Larry” Peterson. They married at the St. Boniface Church in Wimbledon, N.D. on July 13, 1963, and they resided in Devils Lake. Larry eventually died of an incurable cancer. She later met Lloyd Lorenz, and they married in 1972.
Bert liked to paint, she learned to sew and knit. She loved her pet cats. She was an avid baseball fan, initially devoted to the Twins but eventually also a Brewer fan. She was known for singing silly songs, telling stories and always having a funny joke to share.
Bertha will be dearly missed by her children Cheryl (Frank) Phillips, Steve (Paige) Lorenz, and Nancy (Rob) Hyland; grandchildren Karlene (Alex) Sjothun, Alec (Kali) Lorenz, Peyton Hyland, Isaac Hyland, and Brody Hyland; great grandchildren
Artemis and Archer Sjothun; siblings Frank (Deb) Samek and Vitres Samek; special friend Tammie Wierman; as well as other relatives and friends.
Bertha was preceded in death by her parents James and Mary Samek, her brothers Valentine, George, Laudie, Wensel, Bernard, Benny and Steve; and her sisters Georgie Ann Cherney, Mary Albrecht, Mildred Clarys, Margaret Haugen, and Patricia Cherney, as well a several brothers-in-laws and sisters-in-laws; and her first love Larry Peterson.
SERVICES: Bertha’s family invites friends and relatives to a time of visitation on Saturday, May 17, 2025 at Zacherl Funeral Home, 875 East Division Street, Fond du Lac, from 10:30 AM until 12:00 PM. A Liturgy of the Word will take place at 12:00 PM. Cremation will follow, and Bertha will be laid to rest at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Devils Lake, North Dakota.
Bert’s family would also like to extend a special thank you to the caregivers at Harbor Haven and Rehabilitation who have provided Bert with comfort, compassion, care and a loving home for the last 2 years.
In remembrance of Bert, any memorial tributes may be made in the form of charitable donations to either the Fond du Lac Humane Society or Sandi Paws Rescue.