Ben Lauer

Benjamin Michael Lauer, 40, of Kaukauna, born to Greg and Toni Lauer on May 30th, 1975, was unexpectedly called to be with his Heavenly Father on Monday, March 14th, 2016. Ben was met in heaven by the open, loving arms of his mom, Toni, who preceded him in death in 2006.

Ben is survived by his dad Greg Lauer and his girlfriend Sally; his wife Amanda Lauer, whom he cherished beyond measure; his daughter: Ashlee and her fiancé Travis; four sons: Bradley, Joshua, Jesse and Jared; a sister: Kay (Daniel) Schmidt; a brother: Ronald Young; his in-laws: Joe and Karen Portman and David and Susan Dugas; five sisters-in-law: Tracie (Jeremy) LeMere, Miranda Portman and her fiancé Adam, Megan Portman, Michelle (Mathew) Baxter, and Amanda Verkuilen; a brother-in-law: Shannon Dugas; special nieces and nephews: Carly and her fiancé Paul, Justin, Olivia, Porter and Sienna. Ben was also much loved by many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, extended family, friends, neighbors, customers and employees.

Ben worked side-by-side with his father, Greg, running their family business – Skid And Pallet Service, Inc. in Menasha for 23 years. He was a hard worker and an even better leader. Ben put his heart and soul into his business and gave the best of himself to his employees and customers. He appreciated being able to work faithfully alongside his father, for whom he had the utmost respect and admiration, as well as a close friendship.

Ben enjoyed running, biking, going to the gym, target-shooting, campfires, walking in or admiring the woods from his deck, and most of all grilling Sunday dinner for his family. He loved spending time with his wife, with whom he was inseparable. Ben liked to stay busy, and you would often find him in his dad's garage working on a “project” or his Uncle Jimmy's driveway throwing back a couple of cold ones. Ben was the first person to help when needed, and he also spent 13 years as a volunteer firefighter for the Town of Harrison; a service he was proud to be a part of.

Ben was always smiling, especially after meeting and marrying his soulmate, Amanda. Ben was a kind, loving, sensitive, driven, patient and hardworking man with a huge heart, who loved to laugh and live life to the fullest. He was a Guy's-Guy, and was ALWAYS a gentleman with the ladies. He ADORED his children, and was an amazing father, husband, son, brother and friend.
There aren't enough words to describe the kind of man Ben was or how much he meant to those who knew and loved him. He lived his life by example. The enormous impact his life had on so many will leave an equally enormous void by his departure. To know him was to love him and he will be missed beyond measure.

Funeral services for Ben will be held at 5:00 PM on Friday, March 18, 2016, at CHRIST THE ROCK COMMUNITY CHURCH, W6254 Hwy. 10-114 in Menasha. Family and friends are invited to gather at the church on Friday afternoon from 2:00 PM until the time of the service. A private burial will take place at St. Mary Cemetery in Kaukauna.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been established in his honor. Donations can be made online by visiting the 'Ben Lauer Memorial Fund' through gofundme, online at http://mk2.gofund.me/q4ukktzk?rcid=4ab51628ebb211e586fbbc764e052a98 OR any donation can be physically dropped off at any East Wisconsin Savings Bank location.

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“My BenBen, my sweet, beautiful man; I love you so much, Baby. How do I go on without you? I need you here, my Sweet, Sweet Baby. Our unconditional love is a rare perfection, as are you. Thank you for loving me like that, and for accepting my love. You will ALWAYS be my One True Love. My Soul Mate. My Best Friend. I will always love you completely, until we are re-united again, my love.” – Love, your little Amanda “NighNigh BenBen”

“Thank you, Ben, for being my best friend and business partner. Thank you for making me so proud that you were the most Dependable, Kindest and Loving Son that any father could ever have.” – Love, Dad

“Dad, you were such a respected man, and I know you wouldn't want us to be sad for too long and I have so much respect for you that being sad for too long will be hard to do. I would rather have had you for my dad for these twenty years than any other dad for a lifetime.” – Love, Ashlee (20)

“Dad, you died a happy man, knowing you made everyone around you happy. I hope that you died knowing that I loved you and you made me happy” – Love, Brad (16)

“Dad, you were the hardest working man I have ever met. You died with integrity, honor and my respect. The more I try to be happy, I realize that is how you would want us to live our lives” – Love, Jesse (18)

“Dad, I appreciate everything that you did for me and for our family. I appreciate how happy you made my mom, and you did that just by being you, because just being you was enough” – Love, Josh (21)

“Dad, you were a very caring and understanding man. If there was ever anything I needed, I would never be afraid to ask you because I know you would help me in any way you could. It was very easy to relate to you because you loved exercising with us. I had so much respect for you. You will always be missed and love by all that knew you.” – Love, Jared (21)

Benny, you were taken from us too soon, and we all thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for being such an amazing blessing in our lives.