
The eternal spirit of Arlene Hearn (nee Brunner) left her body and crossed over to the other side on Jan. 8 after a productive 90 years this lifetime on Earth.
Arlene was born to Rolley and Barbara (Pevonka) Brunner on Dec. 6, 1925, and spent her childhood growing up on the family farm near Leopolis, attending the Seneca School and then Shawano High School. She married Leroy (aka Strike) Allhiser in 1947; they divorced in 1961. She married Thomas Hearn in 1968, and they had a wonderful and adventure-filled life working together, travelling and building many distinctive houses until his death in 2000. Building and decorating homes was a passion they both shared.
Arlene began her professional career as an accountant in Milwaukee and continued her business career after moving to Phoenix in 1963. She advanced in her financial career from accountant to controller, surviving the hostile-to-women “Mad Men” work world of the 1950s and 1960s. She rose into the ranks of senior management and eventually became vice president and general manager of O’Malley Investment and Realty in Phoenix. In her post-retirement career, she continued to work as a residential real estate broker with MCO Properties in Fountain Hills, Arizona, well into her 70s.
Arlene moved back to Wisconsin for her retirement years in 2001.
She is survived by her son, Gary Allhiser; her sisters, Karen (Michael) Marsden and Sandra (Wayne) Buettner; and her brother, Robert (Mary Jo) Brunner.
She was preceded in death by her brother, Ronald (Barbara) Brunner, and sisters, Helen (George) Peterman and Jane (Bud) Baumgartner.
A memorial service for family member and friends will be held at Swedberg Funeral Home in Shawano on Saturday, March 19, at 10 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations to the hospice organization of your choice is suggested.