Arlene Marion Wroblewski

Arlene Marion Wroblewski rejoined beloved parents Edwin J. & Sophie S. Wroblewski and brother David E. Wroblewski in Heaven on January 18, 2022 after a fulfilling 86 years of earthly life. She is survived by her sister, Bonita Pfeifer (née Wroblewski), nephews Michael & Richard Wroblewski and Daniel Pfeifer, and nieces Mary Taege (née Wroblewski) and Rebecca Foster (née Pfeifer), along with numerous other loving family members, friends and colleagues. Arlene was born unto Eddie & Sophie on February 18, 1935. An intelligent, independent, visionary woman ahead of her years, Arlene was among the top of her class at South Division High School and earned a scholarship to Marquette University, beginning a love she had for the institution that would last the rest of her life. Arlene would earn three degrees in her lifetime, including a B.S. in Journalism and Masters in Education from Marquette, in addition to an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Arlene would return to Marquette twice as an employee, the second time as Director of Admissions for the School of Dentistry. Arlene took great pride in boosting the profile of the then-fledgling dental school; it transformed into one of the top such institutions in the Midwest by the time of her retirement in 1996 and still holds an outstanding reputation to this day. Arlene continued to visit campus regularly after retiring, acting as a docent for Marquette’s Haggerty Museum of Art and playing tennis at the Helfaer Tennis & Recreation Center. As many loyal Marquette alumni are, she was also an avid basketball fan, holding Marquette Basketball season tickets from 1983 until 2019. Arlene’s legacy at Marquette has been continued by niece Becky Foster, a 1989 Marquette College of Arts & Sciences alumna, and nephew Dan Pfeifer, who has worked in various capacities for Marquette’s Athletics & University Advancement departments since 2007. Though never married and without children of her own, Arlene lived life with zeal, taking an active role in the lives of her family and wide-ranging network of friends. An avid traveler, Arlene saw much of the world. Arlene regularly joined friends at the U.S. Open Tennis Championships in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., usually finding time to attend at least one Broadway play during each visit to New York. She also took great joy from being part of the Vagabond Social & Ski Club, making annual visits to Colorado to ski when in good health. Through the Vagabonds, Marquette and elsewhere, Arlene enjoyed keeping company with fun-loving intellectuals who grew to respect her often strong-minded opinions. Arlene was also giving of her time and resources, volunteering as a theater usher and being of assistance to friends and family in times of need. A devout Catholic, Arlene’s life will be celebrated with a funeral mass at 11 a.m. on February 2, 2022 at Holy Apostles Church in New Berlin, Wis. The service will be preceded by visitation at Holy Apostles, beginning at 9:30 a.m. Following the service, friends and family will then be asked to join Arlene one last time at St. Adalbert Cemetery before her interment. In lieu of flowers, friends and family are asked to consider a gift in Arlene’s honor to one of the following Marquette scholarship funds, either at the visitation or online at give.marquette.edu: • Marquette’s General Scholarship Fund • The Ed Pepan or Carl Schrank Scholarship Funds, named for longtime friends of Arlene and supporting students in the J. William & Mary Diederich College of Communication • The School of Dentistry Scholarship Fund