Obituary: Gail Zahn

Gail Zahn, 81, of Sturgeon Bay died on June 29, 2018. She was born November 13th 1936, in Sturgeon Bay to Chester and Lettie Ostram. She was salutatorian of the Class of 1954 of Sevastopol High School. She later attended Badger Business School in Green Bay. On September 1st of 1956, she married her high school sweetheart Roger Zahn.

Gail worked at the Door County Chamber of Commerce and later she and her husband Roger established Zahn’s Green Thumb at the corner of Highway 42/57 and Gordon Road in Sevastopol, a business they operated with their family for over 40 years. She loved working in their cherry and apple orchards, strawberry patch and large vegetable garden. In her youth, she picked 94 pails of cherries in one day.

She enjoyed many vacations with family to Disney World as well as Hawaii, Mexico, Jamaica and several cruises. She was a season ticket holder of the Green Bay Packers. She loved the Milwaukee Brewers and Sevastopol athletics. She was proud that all her children and grandchildren were graduates of Sevastopol High School.

Gail also enjoyed a game of bridge playing in many tournaments with her son over the years and played bingo for years at the Jaycee Club House. Gail sang in the choir at St. Peter’s Lutheran church and for many years was a Sunday school teacher. She worked as a poll worker in Sevastopol for over 40 years. In 1994, she gave life to her son a second time with the donation of one of her kidneys.

She is survived by sons, Jay Zahn and Jan (Betty) Zahn of Sturgeon Bay and daughter Jody (David) Wheat also of Sturgeon Bay; grandchildren, Lacy (Josh) Massart of Brussels, Scarlett Zahn of Sturgeon Bay, Jenna (Steve) Pavlat of Plymouth, and Jeremy Wheat of Sturgeon Bay; four great-grandchildren and a sister-in-law Betty Ostram of Sturgeon Bay.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Roger, a son Jeff, brother Chester Ostram Jr. and infant sister Gloria.

Funeral Services will be 11 am Monday, July 9, 2018 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, the Rev. Joel Sauer officiating. Burial will be in Bayside Cemetery. Friends may call at the Forbes Funeral Home, Sunday July 8, 2018 from 3 to 7 pm and then after 10 am Monday at the church until time of services. A devotion service will be conducted at 7 pm Sunday at the funeral home.