Ronald Petrus

Ron passed away peacefully on September 3rd, 2021, at the age of 64; surrounded by his family. He is survived by his wife Jill (Swanson), his children Jeffrey (Amy) Petrus, Matthew Petrus, and Erin (Matthew) Wood, and his grandchildren Winnie, Ainsley, Mackenzie, and Strider. He is also survived by his mother Arlene Petrus, and siblings Dennis Petrus, Ken (Gail) Petrus, Nancy Petrus, and Kathy Petrus. He was preceded in death by his father, James Petrus, and nephews Eric Petrus and Cole Petrus. He will be fondly missed by many cousins, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, in-laws, and friends. He started dating the love of his life, Jill, in 1976 after attending South Milwaukee High School together. Unbeknownst to them until later, they were actually in the same kindergarten class at Parkway School. They were married July 15th, 1978. A few years later they started a family and had three children. Ron was very involved with his kids, coaching all three kids for several years of boys baseball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls softball, and girls volleyball. When not coaching his kids, he loved to cheer them on in whatever sports or activities they were involved in, even in recent years as the kids grew older. When he found time for his own hobbies, he loved to golf, cheered for the Packers, Bucks, Brewers and Badgers and attended many games with Jill and the family, enjoyed a good movie, and a cold Miller High Life. He grew up cheering for Ron Santo and the Chicago Cubs and waited a long time to see both the Cubs and the Milwaukee Bucks win a championship. He loved taking road trips with Jill, just the two of them. He was a long-time active member of St. Luke's United Church of Christ in South Milwaukee. Ron worked for Milwaukee County Parks in various roles for over 45 years, most notably as a Park Unit Coordinator. He retired from full-time work in 2015. He also worked various part-time jobs over the years and did some work and lots of volunteering for the South Milwaukee Recreation Department. He was heavily involved in the Shootout basketball tournament and South Milwaukee Little League. In recent years he became a grandpa and loved to babysit, read stories, tell jokes and play tricks. Ron loved life, loved people, and loved his family. He will be missed by many, but his legacy will not be forgotten. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to a future memorial gift to honor Ron. Visitation will be held from 11am-2:30pm on Sunday, September 12, 2021 at Molthen Bell Funeral Home in South Milwaukee. Additional visitation will be held on Monday, September 13th, 2021 from 10am-11am, followed by a service at 11am at Molthen Bell. Interment will take place at Forest Hill Cemetery. The family requests that you wear masks.