Lucille Doro
April 1, 1932 - June 23, 2021

Lucille Doro (nee Byers), 89, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, passed away June 23, 2021, in Scottsdale, Arizona. Lu's loving husband Carl passed before her.

She's survived by her children, Peggy Moran (Tom Maglio) of Fountain Hills, Arizona; Patricia (Mike) Hashimoto of Fountain Hills, Arizona; Barbara (the late Patrick,) Shields of Smyrna, Tennessee; Christine (Ken) McGee, of Franklin, Wisconsin; John Doro of Milwaukee; seven grandchildren; two great-grandchildren and her brothers, Tim (Nancy) Byers of Laguna Niguel, California, Tom (Lou) Byers of Cedar Lake, Indiana and Lloyd (Eileen) Byers of Cozumel, Mexico.

Born in Wauzeka, Wisconsin, on April 1, 1932, Lu was one of 10 children of William and Frances Byers, who along with two sisters and four brothers passed before her. She was raised in small towns in hilly, green western Wisconsin, and spent most of her childhood years in Prairie du Chien, graduating from Prairie du Chien High School in 1950. After high school, she moved to Madison, Wisconsin, and soon after to the bigger city, Milwaukee, for work.

She met her husband Carl on a blind date, arranged by her best friends. She married September 3, 1955, just 6 months after meeting Carl. She told the story of Carl's parents signing for permission for Carl to marry. Shocked to learn at the altar that Carl was only 20, not yet legal age, and she was three years older, it got her "Irish up" a bit that he hadn't told her his true age, yet their marriage survived six and a half decades and five children. Lu and Carl started their family on Milwaukee's east side where they lived for 17 years among the company of neighbors who became their best friends.

With the music of the 1950s and 60s playing, they enjoyed card parties, dinners, and family celebrations. They shared hundreds of meals, dozens of recipes, and many memories from a simpler time. It was a sad day in 1972 when Lu and Carl said goodbye and moved their brood to Milwaukee's Wauwatosa border, where urban life turned suburban. Lu and Carl made more friends, and Lu enjoyed the lush green lawns and thick canopies of trees above Honey Creek Drive that reminded her of her childhood in western Wisconsin. Lu's life always revolved around children. First, helping to care for her youngest brothers, Tim and Tom, whom she called "hellions," then thrilled to welcome her own children and her children's children. Her life's joy was spending time with all of them, their friends and parents, most often setting extra plates for lunch and dinner. Lu was a talented baker, cake decorator, and enjoyed gardening, growing roses, and tomatoes.

She had a large rhubarb garden she harvested for her delicious strawberry-rhubarb pie. An avid baker, she treated family and friends to many of her "made from scratch" treats, including blueberry cheesecake, several cakes with "secret" ingredients (so husband Carl would eat them), and at Christmastime, made her famous "green" Jello. Her decorated cakes could have been prize-winning. For every special event, she decorated cakes-from wedding cakes to birthday cakes, all made special for the lucky celebrant. Lu worked part-time for over 25 years in banking operations at First Wisconsin Bank, and volunteered for more than a dozen years at St. Jude the Apostle Thrift Shop in Wauwatosa. She enjoyed both careers tremendously, and they allowed her to make many life-long friends.

With two children in Arizona, and long, cold winters in Milwaukee, Lu, and Carl were bit by the snowbird bug and bought a second home in Fountain Hills where they spent winter months over the past 11 years. After losing her husband on December 6, 2020, Lu lived in an assisted living group home in Scottsdale and passed away after losing a battle with a difficult infection. Lu leaves behind a legacy of putting children first, teaching them strong values, and spending quality time with her own family and friends, all of who will remember her cooking and baking and that she always remembered to make their favorite dishes and treats. She lived by the Golden Rule, always put the wants and needs of her husband and family before her own, and shared her beautiful smile and her loving-kindness with all who touched her life, until her very last days. Truly a remarkable woman who faced challenges guided by God, her Catholic faith, and her strong, yet quiet spirit. Lu will be greatly and profoundly missed by her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, her brothers, their wives, and her friends and their families for many years to come.

Her celebration of life is at Hansen Mortuary in Scottsdale, Arizona on July 16, 2021. Visitation is at 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm Catholic service follows. Donations in her name to Children's Wisconsin Hospital in Milwaukee or Elevate Hospice and Palliative Care in Scottsdale are appreciated by the family. Please share your fondest memories of Lu in a tribute at www.HansenMortuary.com


The service will be live-streamed https://vimeo.com/570027814

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