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MARQUETTE, MI – Gene R. Arntsen, 87, of Marquette and Keweenaw County, passed away peacefully, surrounded by family on Thursday, September 3, 2026.
Gene was born September 27, 1938 to George and Betty Arntsen in Brooklyn, New York. He attended Calumet Public Schools and excelled in academics and sports during his high school years earning ten letters,
three in football, three in basketball and four in track. He graduated from Calumet High School in 1957 and received the George Gipp Memorial Award for his outstanding athleticism. Gene is a Calumet High School distinguished alumni and a featured donor of CLK schools. He graduated from Michigan Technological University in 1964 with a degree in Forestry and in 1965 he earned a degree in Engineering Administration.
After college Gene worked for the forestry division of Calumet & Hecla in the Keweenaw. After moving to Marquette in 1969 he worked for the Goodman division of Calumet & Hecla and then Louisiana Pacific where he managed forestry districts in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. In 1979 he formed a new company for Longyear Realty called UP Forest Marketing Corp. that managed lands owned by Longyear Realty, Keweenaw Land Association, Huron Mountain Club and the Paul Forest. In 1992 he left Longyear and formed his own companies A&M Forest Marketing Corp and Arntsen Forest Products. The following year he formed Birds Eye Creations with a manufacturing facility located in Mohawk Michigan where they make specialty products primarily from Birds Eye Maple and Curly Maple. In 2006 Gene was awarded the Outstanding Alumnus Award by Michigan Tech University and in 2007 he was inducted into the Michigan Tech School of Forest Resources and Environmental Sciences Honor Academy.
Gene and his first wife Maryellen adopted four children: Eric, Jon, Veronica and Joe. They built a cottage on Lake Medora in Keweenaw County and began acquiring personal lands in the UP. On October 14, 1989 Gene married Sharon Johnson and they continued with expanding the beloved Lake Medora cottage and other personal lands, where they spent a substantial part of their summer and fall seasons. Gene and Sharon traveled extensively over the years to places like Italy, Norway, Australia, etc. for both business and personal reasons. They took many vacations to Jamaica and Aruba, eventually choosing to spend winters in Fort Myers Beach, Florida.
Gene loved his wife and he loved his family. He loved trees and working in his forests. He also loved teaching, fishing, huntingand coin collecting.
He was president of the Mosquito Lake Culture Club hunting camp and enjoyed many years of friendship and camaraderie with his hunting (and fishing) buddies. Brook trout and splake were his favorite fish to pursue and when the weather turned cool in the fall he spent his time chasing the elusive white-tailed bucks of Keweenaw County.
Gene was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Veronica Campbell; brother, Ron Arntsen and his wife, Jean Arntsen; grandchild, Caleb Arntsen; and niece, Melany Nelson. He is survived by his loving wife of nearly 37 years, Sharon Arntsen; sons, Eric Arntsen, Jon (Tia) Arntsen and Joe (Debbie) Arntsen, all of Marquette; step-daughter, Kris (Peter) McKirdy of Cooper City, Florida; grandchildren, Mackenzie (Nathan) DeLuca, Olivia and Quinn Arntsen, Ryan, Catherine and Zachary McKirdy, Cole Arntsen,
Teesha and Teneesha Campbell; and great grandson, Peter Jon DeLuca.
Services were held on Tuesday, September 8, 2026 from 10:30 am to 12 Noon at Canale-Tonella Funeral Home and Cremation Services. Visitation will also be held on Friday, September 11, 2026 from 5 to 7 pm at Erickson Crowley Peterson Funeral Home in Calumet.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Gene's name to a charity of your choice.
Gene's family would like to express their heartfelt gratitude to the nurses and staff at UP Health System-Marquette for the wonderful care they provided.
Memories of Gene may be shared at canalefuneral.com