Marcene Lau Rooney

Marcene (Marcy) was born in Fond du Lac, WI to the late Ruben and Hortensia (Tannie) (Weigand) Lau on April 25, 1943. She married John Alexander (Jack) Rooney on March 17, 1973 in Newport Beach, California. They were married for 36 years prior to Jack’s passing in 2009.

Marcy is survived by a step-grandson, Dalton Rooney, who lives in San Diego with his wife Stacey and their daughter Nico. Sisters Bonnie Retzlaff of Jackson and Rae Nell (Raymond) Halbur of Fond du Lac; a foster brother Ivan (Mary) Schuster of Fond du Lac; six nieces and nephews, Natalie (Greg) Kurczewski, Shana (Scott) Beyersdorf, Dori (Steve) Lichty (Vivan & Winston) Joseta Halbur, Ted (Olivia) Halbur (Ebbie, Jebediah, Abijah & Hattie) and Nicholas Schuster (special friend Colleen).

In addition to her husband and parents, Marcy was preceded in death by a brother-in-law, Robert Retzlaff, and step-daughter, Nancy Cordick.

Marcy’s sense of adventure brought her from Wisconsin to southern California in the early 1960s, where she enjoyed the sunshine, worked as an executive secretary, and met her future husband Jack while playing softball at the beach. After a brief courtship, Marcy and Jack were married on March 17, 1973 (St. Patrick’s Day) on a riverboat just off the coast of Newport Beach. The bride and groom both wore green.

Marcy and Jack worked together in the booming telecommunication industry throughout the 1970s and 80s, traveled extensively throughout the US, and eventually moved to Joshua Tree, California, where they owned a large ranch and lived for many years. Marcy was a gifted artist and loved to sketch the natural beauty and wildlife of the desert.

Marcy and Jack moved to San Diego after selling the ranch in the late 1990s. Jack retired and volunteered as a docent at the Maritime Museum. Marcy continued to work as a building manager, and later as an in-home health aide, until her retirement in 2019. Marcy and Jack both loved the beach and vibrant community of the Ocean Beach neighborhood, where Jack would often bring a pair of binoculars for birdwatching while Marcy loved nothing more than talking to folks on the pier, where she made many lifelong friends.

Marcy touched many lives and will be remembered as a loving sister, grandmother, and friend, and especially as an adoptive “second mom” to the many kids she took under her wing throughout the years. Her ashes will be interred alongside her late husband at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, California.