Laura “Lora” Adele Erbstoeszer

Lora was born on March 29, 1987 at Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, to David Erbstoeszer and Karen Erbstoeszer, née Moe.  She was raised in the Village of Pewaukee, along the eastern shore of Pewaukee Lake. Living on the lake, she learned to water ski as a child. As a teenager, she was a member first of the Pewaukee Lake Water Ski Club, and later of the Badgerland Water Ski Show Team.

She was never interested in any career except nursing. She attended Brookfield Academy in Brookfield, WI. Between the end of classes her senior year, and graduation a week later, she had already completed the first week of a Certified Nursing Assistant course at Waukesha County Technical College. She finished the course and a clinical placement that summer, and found work as a CNA when she enrolled at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee that fall. She graduated from UWM with a double major in Nursing and Psychology. While she was in school, she worked at first as a CNA, and later as a home therapist for autistic children.

After graduation, she worked at several hospitals in the Milwaukee area, but then realized one of her goals by becoming a traveling nurse. She worked initially in Scottsdale, AZ, and then moved to Los Angeles, CA. Her faithful canine companion, Otis, traveled with her.

In addition to Nursing, she had a strong interest in yoga, and she loved to travel. Her job as a traveling nurse gave her flexibility to pursue those interests; she took a trip to Europe, where she spent most of her time in Italy. At one point, she combined her interests, taking a trip to Costa Rica for a class leading to certification as a yoga instructor. On that trip, during the brief period when travel to Cuba was permitted, she visited that country, as well as Mexico and Belize.

She was diagnosed with breast cancer in December, 2017. She spent most of 2018 receiving chemotherapy and radiation treatments, followed by surgery and recovery. She was believed to be cancer-free. She returned to her job as a traveling nurse, first in Kenosha, WI and then back to California. In April of 2019, she began to have difficulty walking, and was subsequently diagnosed with a rare and deadly secondary cancer. She greatly exceeded her life expectancy with that diagnosis, but died from complications of the disease at 6:00 PM on February 9, 2020, with her family at her side.

Lora is survived by her parents; her sisters Tiffany Gaumond, Kelly Davis, and Jessi Thomas; her brother David Erbstoeszer II; her brothers-in-law Glenn Thomas, Lawrence Davis, and James Phetteplace; her nieces MacKenzie Riehle, Abbie and Allie Thomas, and Cassidy and Elayna Davis; and her dog, Otis Raymond.

Celebration of Life to be held on Saturday, February 29, 2020 at 6:00 PM at O’Lydia’s Bar & Grill, 338 South 1st Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.