Earl Owen Christianson

Earl Owen Christianson, age 99, passed away on March 23, 2024, at Azura Memory Care, Oak Creek, WI. He was born on July 27, 1924, son of Earl Oliver and Elsie Irene (Nee: Jelinek) Christianson and was a lifelong resident of Racine. He was four months away from his 100th birthday, which he had looked forward to celebrating.

Earl was educated in the Racine public schools. He began his 50 years in the workforce on his 14th birthday, peddling newspapers for the Racine Journal Times. After learning of the attack on Pearl Harbor and having the required high school credits to graduate, he left school at 17 1/2 to enlist in the United States Navy. He was granted a weekend leave in June 1942, to return home to graduate with his class from Washington Park High School. He trained as an Electrician’s Mate, in Detroit, MI and studied at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. He served four years during WWII on the US Arkansas and US Miami, seeing action in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. After being honorably discharged, he worked at Walker-Ajax and Oster in Racine.

Earl was united in Holy Matrimony to Geraldine “Geri” Esther Grube (Grabowski) at Holy Innocents Episcopal Church in Racine on January 25, 1947. They were married for 68 years until Geri’s death in 2015. Earl often remarked how fortunate he was to have found her and would sing, “Let the Rest of the World Go By”: With someone like you, / a pal good and true, / I’d like to leave it all behind, / and go and find / someplace that’s known to God alone, / just a spot we could call our own…

In 1947, Earl was hired as a patrolman by Racine Police Department. He was soon promoted to detective and advanced to Captain of Detectives. After 23 years of civil service, He changed careers by accepting a newly created position of Director of Corporate Security at The Tenneco Corporation, which owned J.I.Case. With this new career came crime prevention responsibilities to Case-owned plants and dealers across the US, Europe, and South America. His proudest achievement at Case was creating a system, replicated across the industry, preventing Case stolen equipment from being sold for parts. Earl retired at age 64, after 18 years at Case.

In 1970, Earl and Geri became active members of the First United Methodist Church, whose pastors focused on Jesus’ message of love for all human beings. In addition to his service work at church, he was an active member of the Masonic Lodge, the Shriners, and the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry. Every morning, since 1965, he began his day by praying the Serenity prayer, after he discovered it in a Masonic ceremony. His Masonic degree work focused on “making good men better”, something Earl strived to be. His strong social conscience grew out of his experiences as a young man and as a police officer with first-hand knowledge of the struggles faced by minority residents. As he became more aware of the evidence of social and political structures that produced, promoted, and permitted grave injustices for many, he used the humanitarian lessons learned from the Episcopal and Methodist Churches along with Freemasonry to break down barriers. Earl embraced and promoted the Progressive Party’s principles, which he believed emulated Jesus’ teachings. He frequently contributed to the local newspaper by writing “letters to the editor” sharing his opinions and beliefs. Earl often said, “I fought in WWII so that ALL AMERICANS would be treated fairly and justly, not just one group or the other.

Upon retirement, in 1989, Earl increased his volunteer work at his church and in various other community organizations. As a volunteer tutor for the Racine Unified School District, he launched Wings, a program to help at-risk elementary students improve basic math and reading skills. He orchestrated the recruitment of 250 other retirees to help tutor students in this program, still in existence. In his 90’s, Earl volunteered to be a mentor in the Veterans Treatment Court. He was a strong advocate of rehabilitation rather than incarceration of non-violent offenders with drug or alcohol abuse issues.

Throughout Earl’s life, he never stopped learning. He was an avid reader and made sure his children were issued their library cards at an early age. He and Geri took many University of Wisconsin-Parkside seminars and study tours. These studies took them to locations throughout the US and abroad including Russia, China, Brazil, Poland, Azerbaijan, Israel, and Egypt. He refined his photography skills and took beautiful photographs that he shared in slide show presentations. Earl also had a great love for music, especially Broadway musicals that he and Geri attended frequently in Chicago, New York and one special premier in London. Earl often commented that many show-tunes addressed inequalities and issues of prejudice and discrimination which further expanded his social awareness.

For many years, Earl and Geri enjoyed spending three consecutive weeks “up north” tent camping with their family. Earl considered this a break for Geri as he took over the “household” duties and cooking. As an avid fisherman, Earl spent innumerable hours on water. You could find him catching perch from the “rocks” along Lake Michigan, wading in rivers catching trout, or sitting with his family, in his handcrafted boat, casting bait, handmade lures, and hand tied flies for pan fish, small and large mouth bass, northerns, muskies, and more. Earl made no apologies for the time he devoted to his passion, declaring with a grin: “God does not deduct from a man’s life, the hours he spent fishing”.

Survivors include five children: Kevin (Lisa) Christianson of Milwaukee, WI, Maureen Reinfried of Wimberley, TX, Tim Christianson of Wauwatosa, WI, Jeanne Christianson Meyer of Muskego, WI, Sharon Christianson of Racine, Wi; six grandchildren: Justine Christianson (Michael Adams), Emily Christianson (Ganesh Lee), Orin Christianson (Jessica VandeWalle-finacee), Erika (Joseph) Mitchen, Derek Reinfried, Troy (Kaity) Armstrong-Meyer; six great-grandchildren: Dylan, Aidan, Watson, Cecelia, Mason, Adela; brother-in-law, Lawrence (Dorothy) Grube of Pittsville, WI, many nieces, nephews, other relatives, and dear friends. He was preceded in death by his father, mother (killed in auto accident in 1938), stepmother, Margaret Christianson (Nee: Schultzen/Letsch), brother, Orin (Theresa) Christensen, sister, Carol (Donald) Vaillancourt, son-in-law, Robert Reinfried and grandson, Kyle Meyer.

The family is grateful for the caregivers and medical professionals who assisted Earl in living independently after Geri’s death. We wish to extend a special thank you to the teams at Azura Memory Care and St. Croix Hospice in Oak Creek who provided comfort, love, and dignity to our father.

Funeral Service will be held at First United Methodist Church, 745 Main Street, Racine WI on Saturday, July 27, 2024, 11:00 am with Rev. Sue Ott-Holland officiating. Relatives and friends may meet with the family at the church from 10:00 until time of service. Memorials to First United Methodist Church or Racine Public Library in remembrance of Earl have been suggested.

Earl would hope to be remembered as the dreamer Senator Bobby Kennedy described when he said, “There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask, why….I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?