Marcene Behrmann, age 97, of Lemmon, SD, passed away on Saturday morning, August 23, 2025 at the Five Counties Nursing Home in Lemmon, SD.

The Rosary Service for Marcene will be held at 1:30 p.m. followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at 2:00 p.m. all on Thursday, August 28, 2025 at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Lemmon.

Visitation for Marcene will be on Wednesday, August 27, 2025 from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Evanson Jensen Funeral Home in Lemmon, SD.

Marcene Elizabeth (Fitzgerald) Behrmann, 97, of Lemmon, South Dakota, passed away from natural causes on August 23rd, 2025, at the Five Counties Nursing Home in Lemmon, six blocks from her home on 2nd Avenue, where she lived for nearly seventy years.

Marcene was born to Grace and James Fitzgerald on September 25th, 1927. Her formative years were spent on the plains of North Dakota during The Great Depression. When she was six years old her father died while plowing the family's fields, and being the oldest daughter Marcene spent the next decade as the backbone of a family braving hunger, dust storms, crushing snow, and ravenous grasshoppers, developing a personal fortitude along the way that would carry her through the rest of her life.

On November 19, 1947, Marcene married John Christian Behrmann in Rapid City, and they had two daughters, Bebe and Carol. Together, Johnny and Marcene ran the Behrmann Oil Company. Marcene kept the books and the peace.

Over the next forty-seven years Marcene had countless adventures with Johnny (or perhaps because of him.) They trekked across the country in their motorhome, and navigated a boat through the Panama Canal. Johnny was also an… adventurous…  pilot. He flew them to Rapid City for their wedding, and the two of them could often be seen tilting out of the sky in Johnny's Piper Cub. After one visit from Johnny and Marcene in the middle of winter, friends watched in horror as Marcene pushed their snowbound plane out of quickly-melting hardpack, then clung to the wing as the plane lifted into the sky. Johnny pulled her into the cockpit by the collar of her sheepskin coat, simultaneously (and narrowly) piloting the plane over a stand of trees.

Marcene, Johnny, daughter Carol, and dog Herky were staying in the Swiss Chalet in Rapid City, SD on June 9, 1972, directly in the path of the Black Hills Flood. Their  cabin was submerged and then swept away by floodwaters. Together they swam to the main office, where they survived by climbing to the second floor, and then saved the life of the  Chalet's owner, who was trapped in the rushing water and clinging to the roof outside the window.

An abiding presence in Lemmon, Marcene watched the town develop from the days of dirt roads and farmhouses. When Ed Lemmon returned to the town he founded after years away, it was Marcene who took him on a tour of new developments. She was known for her sharp wit, friendly encounters with the neighborhood cats, and fierce defense of both her family and property lines. With her famous attention to detail she grew begonias from carefully planted slips, as well as potted geraniums, lilacs, and other flowers, cultivating them through winter in her basement nursery.

Marcene's adventurous spirit survived Johnny's hijinks, and she never let her age keep her from a good time or a new experience. In her later years, with willing accomplices in her daughter Carol, son-in-law Gene, and granddaughter Jessi, she flew on parachute planes, rode on zip lines, and rafted the white waters of the Gallatin River.

Dedicated to her faith and to the church, Marcene was an active member of the Altar  Society and of Catholic Daughters. She was also a stalwart advocate for women at CAVA (Communities Against Violence and Abuse).

Marcene's strength and courage were matched only by the tenderness of her heart. You could always count on Marcene, and she cared for her daughters, grandchildren, and great grandchildren with reliable devotion. She was a great mom, easy to be around, and quick to share her contagious laugh. She will be remembered by everyone who loved her with fondness and admiration.

Marcene leaves behind her brother Donald (Lorraine) Fitzgerald; daughters: Bebe Hitz and Carol (Gene) Kling; grandchildren: Heather (Michael) Johnston, Mark Hitz, Amanda (Justin) Warren, and Jessi (Michael) Mayfield; and great-grandchildren: Hayden Johnston, Rylee Johnston, Eisley Warren, Elliot Warren and soon to be born Baby Mayfield.

She is preceded in death by her husband, John C. Behrmann; parents: James Fitzgerald and Grace Fitzgerald McIlwee; brothers: Ellsworth Fitzgerald and Alan Fitzgerald; and sister Lucille Heier.