Catherine Delma Zerndt

NAPERVILLE, Ill. — Catherine Delma Zerndt, 82, of Mercer, Wis., died Wednesday, May 1, 2013, at the home of her daughter, surrounded by her loved ones.

The former Catherine Delma O’Brien was born Jan. 25, 1931, in Detroit, daughter of the late William and Catherine (McGrath) O’Brien. She graduated from Holy Redeemer High School in Detroit and attended Mary Grove College there for two years. She moved to Florida with friends shortly after college, and then moved back to Michigan where she met her future husband, Norman Zerndt, whom she married on July 14, 1962. She and her husband raised their children in Palatine, Ill., and later retired to Mercer, where they lived the rest of their lives.

Catherine was very active in St. Isaac Jogues Catholic Church in Mercer, and loved to visit with others, garden and bake. She was a loving daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother and friend, who always thought of others first. She had a quiet intelligence with a strong sense of humor, and loved nature and her life in Mercer surrounded by all of its natural beauty. Her two greatest loves were God and spending time with her family. We were always amazed by her strength even in her final days. She kept her sense of humor throughout her illness and tried to smile through it all. She told us she liked to smile and she left this world with a smile on her face surrounded by her family. She will always be a part of our hearts, as she was in life, and will be missed dearly.

Surviving are her children, Jon (Missy) Zerndt, Jeanne (Loren) Kemp, Julie (Jon) Tegethoff and Jamie (Erika) Zerndt; grandchildren, Zack, Max, Maggie, Hayden, Delaney, Brendan, Katie and Jack; and siblings, Patrick and Mary Ellen O’Brien.

Besides her parents, Catherine was predeceased by her husband, Norman; and siblings, William E. Jr. and Nora Jean O’Brien.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Friday, May 10, at 1 p.m., preceded by visitation at noon, at St. Isaac Jogues Catholic Church in Mercer, with the Rev. Lourdu Mandapati, celebrant.

Coffee and cake will be served in the parish hall immediately following the Mass.

Rite of Committal and interment will be in the Mercer Cemetery at a later date.

Donations to the American Cancer Society are greatly appreciated.

Catherine’s obituary can be viewed online and condolences given to her family at mckevittpatrickfuneralhome.com.

Arrangements have been entrusted to McKevitt-Patrick Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Ironwood, Mich.