Artist Pamela Scesniak Has Died

Pamela Scesniak. Photo courtesy of Michael Chaltry.

Pamela Scesniak, a Riverwest artist and educator died Sunday in the home she shared with her husband Denny Rauen, who announced the death on Facebook:

My heart is broken as my dear love, Pamela has passed. She was surrounded by family as she left this earth Sunday and I thank you all for the love and support that has poured her way. This is LOVE

A Whitefish Bay native, and a 1976 graduate of UWM, Scesniak taught art classes to students of all ages in the attic of the home she and her husband shared above Rauen Guitars, where the skilled luthier has repaired instruments for Keith Richards, Buddy Guy, Bruce Springsteen and many others. In 1999 she completed the Green Flow, a series of pictographs she etched into the border of the sidewalks of Brady Street.

But she is perhaps best known as a founding member and guiding spirit of The Squeezettes, a woman-fronted accordion band that has been selected Wisconsin’s Polka Band of the Year five times, most recently in 2024. It was formed nearly three decades ago after the dissolution of the Riverwest Accordion Club.

The “Power Punk Polka” combo included Linda Mueller, also on accordion, Chanel le Meaux on vocals, Michael Eells on drums, and Michael Chaltry on tuba. It performed at dozens of events and festivals throughout Wisconsin. [I had the pleasure, while dressed as Santa, of leading the band on a Christmas patrol of the Brady Street bars for a number of years.]

Claimed by Alzheimer’s

Scesniak’s health deteriorated significantly over the past year; the effects were not simply mental, they were physical as well. Band member Michael Chaltry tells me, “I have never seen such a brutal, horrible, rapid decline ever due to Alzheimer’s Disease.”

For the past several months, Rauen has posted updates on his wife’s condition, and of the support she received from her family and the community. Each would end with “This is LOVE .”

Here is an example:

Caring for your loved one with Alzheimer’s is a 24/7 commitment and this is what help for 4hrs a day 5 days a week looks like. Yes, “it takes a village” and Pamela and I are lucky to be surrounded by such amazing, talented, caring folks. This is LOVE

This post, however, had a different ending:

One of the biggest surprises about dealing with Alzheimer’s is that Medicare and/or Supplemental Insurance does not cover ANYTHING in regard to caring for Alzheimer’s patient. No co-pays just flat-out NO COVERAGE at all for one of the most brutal, longterm diseases. Somehow, 6-10 years of life being turned upside down along with all of your assets and savings being liquidated is boiled down to “does she still remember your name?” Alzheimer’s is about so much more. The lack of support in our healthcare system is astonishing! THIS IS NOT LOVE! How we care for each other is our destiny.

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This is a developing story and will be updated.