Jene Alan Bendel, 83, of La Crosse, passed away on Monday, September 12, 2016. He was born August 8, 1933 to Joseph Harry Bendel and Alyce Evangeline (Ekholm) Bendel. He married Virginia (Ginny) Margaret Gates on September 16, 1955 at Wesley United Methodist Church in La Crosse and celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary last year.

He served in the U.S. Army from 1954 to 1956 as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician based in Fort Riley, Kansas. Jene retired from Transamerica Finance in 1995 and promptly earned his scuba diving certificate, traveling several times to Mexico in search of ocean wildlife.

Jene was an avid outdoorsman. He hunted white-tail deer, pheasant, and a variety of other small game. He camped along the Mississippi River with his family whenever possible and had a particular fondness for fishing, especially Walleye. Jene fly-fished the trout streams of the Coulee region when he wasn’t bird watching or hunting morel mushrooms in the prairies and forests of the area. He also enjoyed preparing meals for the local orioles and hummingbirds while tending his tulip beds in the spring and working in his vegetable garden throughout the summer. The colder months found Jene at his work bench as an accomplished stained-glass artist, and collector of knives and Jim Beam decanters. He volunteered delivering meals to the elderly and was a member of the Moose Club.

Jene’s greatest joy however, was in cooking for and spending time with his ever-growing family. He showed great skill in the kitchen and enjoyed making lefse for family and friends as well as anyone else who ventured through his door. His lefse was a favorite of many people in the area, no holiday meal was complete without it.

He attended his grandchildren’s sporting events, played cards on rainy Sunday afternoons, and hosted birthday and holiday parties at his home. Laughter was an important part of Jene’s life. He delighted in telling old hunting and fishing stories in which he, or another member of his party, was visited upon by some comical misfortune of their own making. Jene realized the reward of the hunt wasn’t in the harvest, but in the adventure; a quality which he passed on to the rest of his family. Jene, loving husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, is deeply missed and those who knew him will always remember Jene for his gifts of love and laughter.

Jene is survived by his wife, Ginny; his son, Kurt (Denise); grandchildren, Jared (Lauren) and Elyse Bendel; great-grandchildren, Ava, Brodie, and Gibson; his son, Garrett (Gwen); grandchildren, Joshua (Laura), Bridgett (Michael) Dresen and Seth Bendel; great-grandchildren, Liam and Caden Dresen; his son, Garth (Sheila) Bendel; his daughter, Sara Stankiewicz; grandchildren, Nicole Sjuggerud and Cheyenne Stankiewicz.

Jene is preceded in death by his parents and mother-in-law, Margaret Gobel Gates.

A visitation and memorial service will both be held at Coulee Region Cremation Group, 133 Mason Street, Onalaska, WI. The visitation will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 20, from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m., with a memorial service the following day, Wednesday, Sept. 21 at 11 a.m.,. Reverend Don Iliff will officiate the service. A private burial for the family will be held at a later date. Memorials may be sent to Wesley United Methodist Church in La Crosse, Catholic Charities of La Crosse, or a charity of one’s own choosing.

Coulee Region Cremation Group is assisting the family.