Mary L. Lofgren

Mary Lehwald Lofgren, 88, of Green Lake, Wisconsin, and formerly of Oak Park, Illinois, passed away at home on July 13, 2026, after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Born in Chicago on December 31, 1937, to John and Marie Lehwald, Mary grew up in River Forest, Illinois, with her siblings Charles, Carol (Dull), and Bill. She graduated from Oak Park-River Forest High School in 1956 and earned her teaching degree from Indiana University in 1960, where she was a proud member of Kappa Alpha Theta.

On June 25, 1960, Mary married her high school sweetheart, Lars Lofgren. During the first 12 years of their marriage, they moved often—from Ohio to Minnesota, California, and back to Illinois—while welcoming five children: Kurt, Jessica, Jason, Katherine, and Jacob. In 1972, the family settled in Appleton, Wisconsin, where they lived for eight years before returning to Oak Park. After their children left home, Mary and Lars moved to Chicago and later divided their time between Fountain Hills, Arizona, and Green Lake, Wisconsin.

Mary was a cherished and committed member of every community she called home. In recent years, she devoted her energy to the Green Lake Festival of Music, serving on its Executive, Development, and Personnel Committees. She was also faithfully involved with The Federated Church of Green Lake, where she lived out her steadfast faith in God. Over the years, Mary gave generously of her time and talents as a 50-year member and past president of PEO Chapter BI; Secretary of the Women’s Board of Appleton Memorial Hospital; literacy tutor at Cook County Prison; President of the Oak Park-River Forest High School Booster Club; Board Vice President of Westside Holistic Family Services; and docent at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House, among many other organizations and clubs. She loved poetry and literature of every kind and joined every book club she could. She also enjoyed lively competition with family and friends over mahjong, dominoes, and canasta.

Mary was preceded in death by her parents; her husband of 54 years, Lars Lofgren (2014); her son, Jacob Lofgren (2023); her grandson, Nathan Bedway (2002); her siblings, Charles, Carol, and Bill; her in-laws, Mark Dull, Charlie Lofgren, and Sarah McGreevey; and her flower girl and niece, Wendy Dull.

Family was Mary’s cornerstone and greatest joy. She will be remembered with love and deeply missed by her children, Kurt (Eva) Lofgren, Jessica (Jonathan) Bedway, Jason (Peggy) Lofgren, Katherine Lofgren, and Jacob’s wife, Jenny Lofgren. She is also survived by her grandchildren, Mark (Mary) and Erika (Upchurch) Lofgren; Mary Katherine, Jakob, and Isaac Bedway; Isabelle and Lewis Lofgren; Abigail, Brian, and Lucy Phillips; Chelsea and Jonathan Arbeen; and Tregg, Jaylen, Maxwell, and Trevor Lofgren; as well as her great-granddaughter, Charlotte Upchurch. Mary is further survived by her in-laws, Jane Lehwald, Jane and Henry Pearsall, and Mary Moses Lofgren; step-grandchildren Drew, Elise, and David Spenny; and many beloved nieces and nephews.

The family wishes to express heartfelt gratitude to all who helped Mary throughout the past year with love, kindness, and compassion, especially Janice McDowell, whom Mary dearly loved.

A memorial service honoring the life of Mary Lehwald Lofgren will be held on Sunday, August 2, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. at The Federated Church of Green Lake, 489 Scott Street, Green Lake, with Rev. Karen Gygax-Rodriguez officiating. The service will be followed by a celebration of Mary’s life at the Heidel House, 653 Illinois Avenue, Green Lake, at 3:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations in Mary’s honor may be made to the Green Lake Festival of Music, PO Box 569, Green Lake, WI 54941, or The Federated Church of Green Lake, PO Box 471, Green Lake, WI 54941.