Gillett superintendent Hencsik passes away

The superintendent of Gillett Public Schools died the morning of May 28, hours before the graduation ceremony began for the Class of 2023.

Todd Hencsik, 51, was hired in 2020 to succeed retiring superintendent Todd Carlson. He became responsible for guiding the district through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He took a leave of absence in mid-December after announcing that he had been diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a form of bone marrow cancer, and would be undergoing a stem cell transplant. In October, the Gillett School Board had hired Wayne Johnson to serve as interim superintendent while Hencsik was away.

A graduate of Wisconsin Lutheran High School in Milwaukee, Hencsik was a 1996 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, where he was an integral part of the Titans men’s basketball squad.

He was a teacher at Milwaukee Metropolitan High School and Bradley Tech, assistant principal and athletic director at Waukesha West High School, principal at Hononegah Community High School in Rockton, Illinois, and Campbellsport High School principal before taking his first superintendent job at Gillett.

He coached baseball, basketball, football and track at a number of high schools including Brookfield East, West Allis Central High School and Bradley Tech.

Visitation is scheduled at the Becker Ritter Funeral Home in Brookfield from 2-5 p.m. June 10. A celebration of life is planned at 5 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to the education fund for Hencsik’s children, Parker and Charli.