Arthur F. Moratz III

Arthur F. Moratz III, 76 passed away Tuesday Evening at Theda Clark Hospital.
He was born October 5, 1935 in Pekin, Illinois to Arthur F. Moratz II and Harriette Mantle-Moratz. The family moved every two years due to his father's occupation as a Civil Engineer in soil conservation, but most of his schooling took place in the Whitefish Bay area after the family moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
After high school, Art enlisted in the Navy. Attended and graduated from submarine school in New London, Connecticut. He served on the USS Batfish and the USS Dogfish as an electrician.
Arthur continued his schooling after an Honorable Discharge from the Navy at Milwaukee School of Engineering where he received a B.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1962 and a MA in Business Management from Northern Indiana in 1978.
As a personable and "Hands-on" engineer, Art's career was exciting and rewarding. First in field service with Fairbanks Morse of Beloit, Wisconsin the builders of Engine Generators which took him to Spain and Guam. He set up the machines, taught how to run them and wrote technical manuals.
After a long-distance courtship, he married Margaret Bowden, an elementary teacher (originally from Ottumwa, Iowa) on October 23, 1965 in St Jude's Church at Beloit, Wisconsin.
Two years later in 1967, Art and Margaret moved to Winneconne, Wisconsin where he worked for Colt Industries, a Division of Case, building and later testing garden tractors. By then he knew what he wanted to do! Over the years he designed, improved and tested equipment for a number of Lawn and Garden companies like: Yardman in Jackson, Michigan, Jacobsen Mfg. in Racine, Wisconsin, Garden Way in Troy, New York and Ariens in Brillion, Wisconsin. Art developed state of the art testing facilities and ran programs in the south during the winter months and north in summer testing equipment.
In 1986, Art moved the family back to "the cottage" on Lake Poygan, Larsen, Wisconsin which would remain home base for all of his future projects. He was an expert witness for the Lawn and Garden industry; a Realtor for Caldwell Banker and built a state-of-the-art self storage facility (19787-1997) called the Nordale Space Center, and managed the Breezewood Park Apartment (in Neenah) with his wife, Margaret before retiring in 2006 when he was diagnosed with Alzheimers.
In Art's spare time he enjoyed remodeling and renovating houses (ours, too), landscape design, hunting, and restoring high-performance classic and antique cars. He also coached youth baseball and hockey for 18 years, was president of the Winneconne Kiwanis club and the Root River Heights Homeowners Association in Franklin, Wisconsin.
Survivors include his wife Margaret Moratz of Larsen, WI; one son Craig Moratz of Larsen, WI; and two grandchildren Craig Moratz Jr. (better known as C.J.) of Larsen and Jessica Metcalf of Missouri, one sister Martha Daniels of Milwaukee, WI.
Art Moratz was preceded in death by his parents and two children Scott Andrew Moratz and Brian Thomas Moratz.
A memorial service with military honors will be held November 5, 2011, Saturday Afternoon at the Mueller Funeral Home in Winneconne, WI with visitation for family and friends at 1:00pm followed by a service at 2:00pm.

Mueller Funeral Home
904 E. Main St.
Winneconne, WI 54986
(920) 582-4242
Please submit online condolences to
www.muellerfuneralhomeinc.com