Irene R. Tiegs

Irene Rose (Albrent) Tiegs August 26, 1926 – August 12, 2020 ‘I think I need to bake one more dessert for Sunday. I only have 5’…… We gathered at mom & dad’s every Sunday for a light lunch and DESSERTS. You never left her house with less than two plates filled with whatever desserts she had baked that day. Mom loved to bake and she read cookbooks the way other people read the latest top-selling novel. She bookmarked recipes that sounded good. Her many cookbooks were well worn with notes, scribbles, and paper tucked in to mark special pages. Christmas cookies were her favorite and we grew up not realizing that all families didn’t have at least two dozen kinds of holiday cookies and stolen. Our school lunches always included homemade cookies, bars, turnovers, cakes and sweet rolls. Sometimes we wished we could have Twinkies or store-bought cookies like our friends had never realizing that they envied us! Mom worked as a crossing guard in Grafton for many years and her ‘kids’ were all very special to her and she made sure they were the recipients of many homemade treats. Baking was her first love but sewing came in right behind along with knitting. We Tiegs’ girls had the best-dressed Barbie’s and baby dolls in town! With four daughters to sew for, mom made many matching nightgowns and dresses and a store-bought costume for Halloween was unheard of. Our handmade costumes were handed down through the years (and a few made it down to grandchildren! ) Alas, little brother Jimmy was not as lucky as far as clothes for his toys and no matching outfits. Irene Rose Albrent was born in Hatley, Wisconsin on August 26, 1926, the firstborn child of Edward & Jeanette (Czech) Albrent. She and her two younger brothers grew up on the family farm and mom had many stories to share about farm life. When she was 18 she left Hatley for the ‘big city’ of Milwaukee. There she met Elroy Tiegs of Grafton who would become her beloved husband for 69 years until he passed away unexpectedly at the age of 95. Irene & Elroy were married on May 28, 1949 at St. Florian’s Catholic Church in Hatley, Wisconsin, and they settled in Milwaukee where they were blessed with three daughters. In 1958 they moved to a brand new house on Second Avenue in Grafton (dad’s hometown) and had a fourth daughter and then a son! Through the years they moved within Grafton to Spruce Street and eventually moving twice within Sunset Court. Mom & dad were a regular fixture in the neighborhood going for their daily walks for many years, usually with their little black dog. Irene passed away of natural causes on Wednesday, August 12. She would have been 94 in two weeks. She is survived by her daughters Diane (William) Wells of Cedarburg; Karen (Marty) Formico of Mequon); Susan (the late Michael) Fedel of Port Washington; and her son James (Sue) Tiegs of Grafton. She is further survived by 9 grandchildren: Andrew(Allison) Wells of St. Paul, Minn; Kathryn (Douglas) Mitchell of Germantown; Andrea Farrington of Grafton; Bryan (Amanda) Farrington of Cedarburg; David Fedel of Port Washington; Amy Fedel of Pewaukee , Alex Wyler of Culver City, CA; Connor Tiegs of Grafton and Jaeden Tiegs of Grafton. Irene was the proud great-grandmother of nine. She is also survived by her brother-in-law and his wife Raymond (Doris) Tiegs of Grafton and sister-in-law Lila (the late Eugene) Albrent of Hatley; Son-in-law David Farrington as well as nieces and nephews. Irene was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Elroy; daughter Sandra Farrington; brother Eugene Albrent; brother and sister-in-law Myron & Shirley Albrent; son-in-law Michael Fedel; nephew Paul Tiegs; sister-in-law Delores (Tiegs) Lambrecht and Ray Lambrecht; A visitation for Irene will be held at Mueller Funeral Home in Grafton on Thursday, August 20, from 1:30-2:30. All are welcome. A Mass will follow at 3:00 in St. Joseph Church in Grafton. Please wear masks and follow the recommended health guidelines. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Aurora Hospital Cancer Center in Grafton in memory of her daughter, Sandra Tiegs Farrington, would be appreciated. Thank you to the caring staff at Village Point Commons Creste for their loving care of our mother, especially during the unprecedented pandemic. You kept her safe! Our mother is most assuredly happily baking up in Heaven….. Angel food cake?