Marie Frances Meloy

Marie Frances Meloy (nee, Aurit) died early Sunday morning, September 28, 2025 at Hooverwood Living in Indianapolis after a long illness. She died peacefully in her sleep. She was 91.

Marie Frances Aurit was born in the depth of the Great Depression on January 13, 1934, on the Aurit family farm a few miles north of Shullsburg, Wisconsin. She was the last of four children born to Andrew Henry and Mary Leone (Hayes) Aurit. Marie considered her older siblings, George, Lucille, and Kate, her best friends. She dearly missed her brother George, who died in 1986, and whose high school hijinks became the stuff of Shullsburg legend, and when asked about her annual vacation with Lucille and Kate, she said that “I drove while they argued” she couldn’t wait to do it again next year. Yet, it was to her family, a daughter, six boys, and nearly twenty grandchildren and great- grandchildren, that she devoted her time and energy. Marie lived a long and at times challenging life, but as she approached the end, she told her family that she had lived a very good one.

Almost to a fault, Marie never considered herself entitled to anything. She worked hard, especially in school. She attended St. Matthew’s Parish Elementary School in Shullsburg and then Shullsburg High School, where she was a member of student government, Senior Class President, worked on the yearbook, and earned the Daughters of the American Revolution’s annual Good Citizen Award for 1951. After graduation, she enrolled in Mercy Hospital’s School of Nursing in Dubuque, Iowa, where in 1955 she earned a diploma in Nursing. As a Registered Nurse, Marie began her career at Hazel Green Hospital in Hazel Green, Wisconsin.

On her graduation day, Frank Meloy of Benton proposed to her. She said yes. The two had met at a dance in Dubuque. Loras College, the all-male school Frank and his two brothers graduated together from, had recently affiliated with the Mercy’s nursing school, so perhaps their meeting was part of a grand matchmaking strategy employed by the two schools, or maybe it was just luck.

In any case, on August 27, 1955, Frank and Marie married at Saint Mathew’s Church in Shullsburg. Frank’s brother Bernard, recently ordained as a Catholic priest, was the officiant. Following their marriage, the couple lived in Benton near Frank’s family in the modest rental house on Main Street, across the street from St. Patrick’s. While Frank began a more than forty-year career at Flexsteel Industries (Northhome Furniture) in Dubuque, Marie continued at Hazel Green Hospital. Nine months later, on June 12, 1956, Jane Marie was born. Living with the Meloys allowed Marie to continue her nursing career while Frank’s mother Catherine Loretta (Katy) Meloy (Gough) and his sister Mary Catherine (Mary Kay) helped with child care. Marie immediately set out to assimilate into the Meloy family, which was bound to be a challenge. Frank’s included his brother Father Bernard, who had been assigned to Fort Atkinson, closer to Milwaukee than home, his father, Bartholomew (Bert), who had retired from a career at the Eagle Pitcher lead mine near town, and who was a 4-pack-a-day smoker, and drinker of “ardent spirits.” Frank’s older brother, Joe lived at the family home while Frank’s younger sister, Jane Margaret Meloy (1934-2002), had left to join a convent, landing first in St. Louis then in Alabama for several years before leaving the sisterhood in the early 1970s and settling in Metairie, Louisiana. And of course, there was Mary Kay, whose relationship with both Frank and Marie would always be close, though Marie admitted late in life that “we had our differences.”

A year later, on June 5, 1957, Margaret (Peggy) Ann was born, and a year after that, John Bernard was born on June 2, 1958. The house had already grown too crowded, so Frank and Marie rented a house and moved their growing family a few blocks east and across the street from St. Patrick’s.

Marie was barely 25 when Peggy died on March 17, 1959. The details remain murky, but it is known from the papers that she had swallowed phenobarbital, which Katy was using, apparently to treat hypertension. Peggy was not the first nor the last child to die of an accidental overdose; prior to 1970, accidental poisoning was the leading cause of death among children under 5-years old. But that certainly did not make it easier on Marie or Frank, or anyone else in the family, for that matter. Jane and Peggy had both been suffering from pneumonia and were hospitalized in Hazel Green; Jane remained in the hospital after Peggy’s release. Aunt Kate was sitting in the room with her and Marie was at work down the hall when another nurse told Marie that Peggy was in the hall. When Marie saw her limp in the doctor’s arms, she collapsed. Peggy’s death was a shock to the entire town of Benton, among all the young children in town, Peggy had stood apart. After her death it seems that Marie and Frank mourned Peggy’s death in their own way, but she remained a presence throughout both of their lives.

Marie was athletic as a girl—climbing fences around the farm and roller skating with enough skill to earn the part of a roller-skating carhop in the senior play in high school. She was passionate about sports and while she loved watching her children and grandchildren compete, it was the pros that really excited her. Like most everyone in Wisconsin, she was a Green Bay Packer fan. However, it was the Chicago Cubs that really excited her. The Cubs had been her father’s favorite team and Marie remembered listening to games with him on the family radio. She was still following the Cubs until just a few weeks ago. When the Cubs won the World Series in late October 2016 after a 108-year drought, she warned that the universe had been knocked out of balance and that we should be prepared for the unexpected. She was prescient too.

Marie was also competitive. For many years in Indianapolis, she bowled in a league consisting of the parents of students of Chatard High School. But it was cards—especially euchre—that she was passionate about. She put that passion on display at David and Michelle’s wedding reception at the Knights of Columbus Hall; she was teamed with her sister-in-law Gertrude against Father Bernard and Aunt Lucille, whose caution and conservatism in cardplaying was only exceeded by Bernard’s “bending” the rules so intently that Marie thought he should be defrocked. Much to her delight, Marie helped to instill a love of euchre in her children that has carried into the next generation as well. In the last decade of her life, she found enormous satisfaction from just hearing her children and grandchildren playing cards in the next room. A wry smile would come to her face when she heard raised voices or trash talk coming from the other room.

In addition to her nursing skills, which served her throughout her life, Marie played the piano, had a great ear for music, wrote wonderful, concise letters, and told great stories, some of which were undoubtedly true. She had terrific comic timing that appeared not only in the stories she told but also in the many cards and letters she wrote. When Shullsburg hosted its annual talent show, which offered cash prizes, Marie was a chosen to play the piano as an accompaniment to the Master of Ceremony, the local airport manager. When Frank and Marie bought the house on 72nd Court in Steinmeier, they installed an upright piano that Marie hoped would inspire her children to play. While that did not take, the house was usually full of music, at least in the mornings, as Marie would have music playing on the radio in the kitchen while she prepared breakfast. She even managed to get Frank—who seemed to prefer staticky AM radio—to attend a few music concerts. One, for the Wright Brothers Overland Stage Company, had Frank dressed in blue jean overalls and wearing a cowboy hat. She was also a talented model maker. Marie patiently built a scale model of the British ship the Cutty Sark. Due to the detailed painting required and the complexity of the rigging, the model was a level 5, requiring advanced skills. It was displayed at the center of the fireplace mantel until it was reduced to smithereens by a football tossed across the family room by a guest whose name has been stricken from the record.

She was a fearless traveler who, if born later, undoubtedly would have attracted a large following on Instagram and no doubt Tic Tok as well. Her love of travel and exploration stood in stark contrast to Frank, who liked to move from place but seemed to lose interest when he got there. When the two toured the Sierra Nevada Frank would fall asleep at a thousand feet above sea level, just as Marie would be reaching for her camera, and he would regain consciousness as they passed that mark on the way down the hill. Marie enjoyed taking in the sites, loved museums and theaters, and was particularly fond of mountain ranges (she had a replica of an Albert Bierstad painting in the living room), a walk in the forest near Hayward, or finding the perfect Spider Lake vista. She often told the story of when she and Merle Delehanty explored the sites and museums around Trajan’s Column in Rome. They lost track of their husbands, discovering several hours later that Frank and Len had found a flat surface near the column and had spent those hours playing Gin Rummy. Marie always told that story with slightly exaggerated eye rolls.

Marie loved to cook if there was a crowd to sit and enjoy a meal with, but was happy simply eating crackers and cheese if she was eating alone. Frank could hardly boil water but always shaped the dinner menu whether he meant to or not. He annually bought a case of Red Gold Ketchup and “half a cow” that was cut into a ribeye steaks, liver, ground beef, and some unnamed cuts that required a mace to tenderize. She used those cuts to make a simple pasty—meat, potatoes—onions—a favorite of Meloys everywhere, that was eaten smothered in ketchup, while she turned the abundance of ground beef into everything from hamburgers to 3-day chili (water added each day to extend servings to the next) and to her annual “Halloween Hash,” which combined elbow macaroni, canned tomato, water, and a packet of seasoning with the beef. During the holidays a turkey had to be accompanied by a ham, the former carved on the spiked cutting board she received as a wedding gift. When her children came of age, however, she stepped aside during the holidays and let them handle the main dishes while she focused her efforts on pies and other desserts. Pecan, pumpkin, or apple? All three, of course. The holidays also brought cookie dough embedded with miniature peanut butter cups, laid out on every surface of the house. Marie baked Grandma Meloy’s sour cream tarts better than the originals—and better even than Mary Kay—but always allowed Mary Kay to make them to ensure harmony in the house. But any Friday night or Sunday afternoon could be just as special if there was family around to share time with.

While Frank read the sports pages, Marie read the rest of the newspaper, practically from end to end, usually finishing with the crossword puzzle. She was not overly political, but she paid close attention to the world near and far. Later in life, she became, in her words, a single-issue voter. She supported anti-abortion causes, and said that she would sometimes vote against her better judgement if it would advance that cause.

Marie always had time to help her children and grandchildren, but also had a tremendous desire to be of service beyond our home. She helped with school work, especially if that involved art and crafts, but she was no slack on science or math and to some, the world’s greatest speller. She made time to volunteer at church, to donate blood, to make quilts to help Christ the King fund raise, and to help with annual church festivals. She was justifiably proud of her work with the Little Sisters of the Poor at Saint Augustine Home. For many years she volunteered at Saint Augustine’s, helping with daily chores that made life easier for the sisters and the residents, such as making beds, doing laundry, serving meals, and helping with the annual fund raiser. She also served as President of Saint Augustine Home Guild, a strong testament to her commitment and her love and care of people in need.

Marie was the last of her generation of Meloys and Aurits. She was preceded in death by her daughter, Margaret (Peggy) Ann Meloy (June 5, 1957 - March 17, 1959); her parents, Andrew Henry Aurit (1893-1962) and Mary Leone (Hayes) Aurit (1896-1981); her parents-in-law, Bert Meloy (1890-1959) and Katie (1889-1971); her husband, Frank (February 27, 1929-March 12, 2000); her brother George Edward Aurit of Shullsburg; (1923-1986); her sisters Mary Lucille Herbst (April 10, 1924-September 1, 2019) who left behind a small herd of rescue cats; and Leone Catherine (Kate) Cruse, (November 25, 1925-June 30, 2018); her sisters-in-law Gertrude Aurit (1937-2010), Mary Kay Meloy (1927-2009), and Jane Margaret Meloy (1934-2002); her brothers-in-law Lester Martin Herbst (February 4, 1912-April 4, 1995) and Gerald Cruse (1986); and by her son-in-law Bruce Allen Dobson (January 22,1952-December 23, 2022).

Marie is survived by seven of her children: Jane Marie Dobson of Indianapolis; John Bernard and Julie of Madison, Wisconsin; Michael Joseph and Hope Hauptman of Merced, California; James Francis and Rhonda of Kansas City, Missouri; Patrick Andrew and Julie, David Joseph and Michel, and Christopher Robert, all of Indianapolis, Indiana. Marie was a member of Christ the King Catholic Church in Indianapolis.

A visitation will be held Thursday evening, October 2, from 4:00 P.M. until 7:00 P.M. at Feeney-Hornak Keystone Mortuary, 2126 East 71st Street, Indianapolis, Indiana. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, October 3, 2025 at 11:00 A.M. at Christ the King Catholic Church, 5858 Crittenden Ave., Indianapolis, Indiana. Burial will be in St. Patrick’s Cemetery in Benton, Wisconsin at 2:30 P.M. the following day, October 4.

The family would like to draw attention to the people of Saint Vincent’s Hospital who treated Marie with care and respect, to the unnamed drivers, attendants, and EMTs who moved her from place to place, and to the people of Hooverwood Living for the way they treated her. She did not want to go to Hooverwood, and she certainly did not want to die there, but she was delighted by the people she met, especially those who took care of her. They treated her with kindness, thoughtfulness, and professionalism. Thank you.

There is no space here to describe the many ways that Jane and Chris have supported Marie in the last decade of her life, and especially in the last two-and-a-half years. Chris though, deserves special mention. While he would undoubtedly reject the idea that he did anything out of the ordinary, Chris’s hard work, tenderness and care, and ultimately his sacrifice on her behalf didn’t just make Marie more comfortable and happier, it actually kept her alive. He has been an inspiration.

Marie had the talent, skills, and intelligence that, barring American society’s limitations on the careers for women coming of age in the 1950s, would have allowed her to succeed in virtually any profession she chose. Ultimately, she chose to be a wife and a mother, a vocation where she found fulfillment. In raising her daughter and six sons and helping, however she could, to raise her grandchildren and great grandchildren, she found tremendous satisfaction and joy. She took pride in knowing that she played some role in all of our successes; and we knew that she would be there to help us recover from our failures. We are thankful that we got to be a part of her life.

Donations in her name to the Shullsburg Community Fund, PO BOX 733, Monroe, WI 53566 or to The Saint Augustine Home Guild, PO BOX 90211, Indianapolis, IN 46290 would be app