Louise C. Roach
(née Louise Marie Corso)
POYNETTE - Louise C. Roach (née Louise Marie Corso), age 90, died peacefully with family, on Thursday, August 28, 2025, at Columbus Health and Rehab, Columbus, WI.
Louise (Lou) was born in Ottawa, Ill. on March 24, 1935, to Lindo and Catherine Corso. She graduated from high school in Ottawa, IL in 1953, and attended Southern Illinois State University, majoring in Journalism. She married Thomas G. Roach on September 3, 1955.
Family often referred to Lou as the “Wordsmith” as she was a very avid reader and writer. She appeared in multiple publications and gave readings of her work, ultimately publishing 3 books of poetry. A member of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets for 55 years, her love for language and writing was a passion she embraced her entire life.
Her career in words began in college where Lou worked as a reporter for the Pantagraph Newspaper, in Bloomington, Ill. Later Lou worked as an elementary teacher at St. Annes Catholic School, in Dixon, Ill, in 1967 and 1968. She continued teaching when the family moved to Prairie Du Chien, in the 1970s. In the early ‘70s her career evolved as she became a Social Worker for Wyalusing Academy in Prairie du Chien and then for Crawford County. In 1978, she moved to Waunakee, working first as a Social Worker for Central Wisconsin Center, in Madison, and later at Mendota Mental Health Institute, where she took on a number of different roles until her retirement in 1996. In 1982, Lou earned her MSSW from Edgewood College in Madison.
She continued with private practice as a social worker in retirement and continued to focus on words. She spent many years as a volunteer and friend of the Poynette Library while staying active in several poets’ circles and continuing to write and publish her poetry. She touched many lives in a very positive way in her many years of dedicated service as a mother, teacher, poet, and social worker.
Louise is survived by her three children, John, of Poynette, Jane, of Monona, and Matthew (Kathleen), of Sun Prairie; her grandchildren, Mackenzie, of Sun Prairie, Kayleigh (Tasha) Roach, of Colorado, and Sara Schwartz, of Colorado; her sister, Linda Corso-Busse, of Vero Beach, FL; her brother, Joseph (Marty) Corso, of Hampshire, Ill; and the newest apple of her eye, her first great-grandchild, Tala. Louise was preceded in death by her husband, Tom; and sisters, Cathy, Donna, and Mary.
Special thanks to the staff of Agrace Hospice, in Fitchburg, and the Columbus Health and Rehab staff, in Columbus, WI, for their compassion, their attentiveness, and their dedication to caring for residents.
A Celebration of Life will take place at a later date. She asked that donations in her name be made to the Poynette Area Public Library, 118 North Main St., Poynette, WI 53955.
The Pflanz Mendrala Funeral Home, in Poynette, is assisting the family.
