Anton "Tony" Wewel

Mass o f C hristian B urial f or A nton “Tony” W ewel, a ge 8 5, o f C reighton, Nebraska was held Saturday, March 8, 2025, at St. Ludger Catholic Church in Creighton, with Reverend Marcus Knecht as celebrant.

Brockhaus Funeral Home in Creighton was in charge of arrangements. Tony died Saturday, March 1, 2025, at Faith Regional Health Services in Norfolk.

Anton “Tony” Rudolph Wewel, son of Rudolph and Gail (Lutz) Wewel, was born July 11, 1939, in Stuart. T ony g rew u p o n a s prawling r anch i n t he S andhills southeast of Newport where his life-long love of agriculture and cattle took r oot. A fter g raduating from S aint J oseph C atholic High School in Atkinson, he ranched with his dad while boxing in n eighboring t owns. A fter a f ew y ears, a nd a f ew b roken noses, he left the ranch to attend Norfolk Junior College and would g o o n t o g raduate f rom t he U niversity o f Nebraska-Lincoln with a degree from the Teachers’ College. He was the first in his family to earn a college degree.

He met Jeanette Jardee at a dance and eventually talked her into going on a date. The two married on September 14, 1963, at Saint Boniface Catholic Church in Stuart. Tony and Jeanette were married for 61 years and had five children: Van, Mark, Patty, Jenny, and John.

In 1 966, a fter g raduating f rom U NL, T ony a nd J eanette moved to Creighton where Tony took a job as the Vocational Agriculture teacher. When he started, the fledgling program had an e nrollment o f j ust 3 0, b ut d uring h is s ix-year t enure, h e would b uild a n a ward-winning p rogram w ith n early 1 30 students.

His next career would be sales, and he would be good at it. In 1972, he began work as a salesman for Land O’Lakes, and in the early 1980s he joined SuperSweet Feeds. As an animal feed specialist with SuperSweet, Tony traveled central Nebraska from Valentine to Grand Island handing out ham sandwiches and making fast friends. A natural salesman, Tony was at least a five-time winner of the Trail Blazer award, which was given to the company’s top salesman. (Tony won so many sales awards, his family lost count!)

At the age of 62, Tony took early retirement, but he would not be good at it. While “retired” he worked for Hansen Feed for a few years; then Region 4 Behavioral Health Systems for about four years; then drove a Navigator bus for eight years – all while working for Brockhaus Funeral Homes as a funeral attendant. Not to mention, he continued to work on his hobby farm raising bucket c alves a nd g rowing a l arge g arden u ntil h e d ecided t o step back at the age of 82.

Tony was actively involved with his church and his community. A l ong-time p arishioner of S t. Ludger C atholic Church, he was deeply committed to his Catholic faith. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus Fourth Degree and taught high school CCD classes. He was also involved with the Creighton H istorical S ociety, a nd i n t he 1 970s w as a ctive w ith the Chamber of Commerce. For many years, Tony ran a boxing club, taking some of his boxers to the Golden Gloves. For many, many years he was a 4-H club leader ensuring every area kid who wanted could belong. An excellent livestock judge, Tony was often hired to judge neighboring county fairs.

Perhaps his greatest joy was watching his children’s, and then his grandchildren’s, activities. If there was a ball game, he was in the bleachers. If there was a performance, he was in the audience. If there was a livestream, he was tuned in. Without a doubt, Jeanette was his greatest love. The two loved to dance, and their home was full of friends. Tony would tell tall tales, and Jeanette would serve as fact-checker. They traveled and had a knack for turning an hour drive into a three-hour side trip.

Tony d ied o n M arch 1 , 2 025, a t F aith R egional H ospital i n Norfolk, at the age of 85.

Survivors i nclude h is w ife, J eanette; c hildren, V an ( Lori) o f Gretna, Mark (Beth) of Emerson, Patty Houser (Jesse) of St. Paul, MN, and John (Lindsay) of Elkhorn; son-in-law, Scott Etheredge of Fortville, IN; twin brother, Paul (Betty) Wewel of Lakewood, CO; s isters, T erese A nn Lech ( Harry) o f T aylor, K ris Wewel o f Burwell, Ruth Masin of Billings, MT, and Jean Logsdon (Tim) of Buckeye, AZ; 14 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and close friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; a daughter, Jennifer Etheredge; and a sister, Rudina Thayer.