Dianne Meyer

The most fitting word to capture the essence of such a wonderful person as Dianne Meyer is family. Her family meant the world to her. There simply wasn’t anything that she wouldn’t do for them and her greatest joys were found in their successes. Large family gatherings were the source of meaning in her life and were never without some of her own abundant food dishes and baked goods! A talented gardener, baker, and Euchre player, Dianne leaves behind a legacy of being generous and selfless beyond measure. Taken too soon, her warm memories will be cherished forever in the hearts of all those who knew and loved her.

The 1950’s were known as the decade of the baby boomer. Exciting times indeed with the many talents of professional baseball players Mickey Mantle and Hank Aaron, as well as the rock music icon, Elvis Presley and movie heartthrob, James Dean. Families still huddled around the television to catch the latest westerns such as Gunsmoke or anything featuring Lucille Ball. On February 3, 1953, Lloyd and Jeanette (Adams) Addie welcomed home their daughter, Dianne in Monroe, Wisconsin. Born the youngest of three children, her birth brought great joy to the family home.

Growing up in the Whitewater area on a local inland lake, Dianne’s childhood never lacked for adventure. She enjoyed years of waterskiing and fell in love with fishing at an early age. Her parents both worked outside the family home. Her father worked construction and her mother worked at the local university. Dianne’s spunk can be credited to being raised by a dad who loved to pull pranks and joke with the children. Dianne and her siblings were known to follow suit. They had the usual amount of antics growing up and fondly remember the time when Dianne accidentally chopped off her sister’s hair while playing beautician! Dianne enjoyed participating in Girl Scouts as well as baking and canning with her maternal grandmother. Drawn to music, she also played the clarinet including solos at band competitions. Her intelligence and tenacity were evident in her high school years where she was known to be a straight-laced and studious student on the National Honors Society. Graduating with the Class of 1971 from Whitewater High School, Dianne’s future was wide open for her!

The meeting of the man of her dreams, Curtis Meyer, happened while the two of them were pursuing their degrees from the University of Wisconsin. Dianne was finishing up her BBA and ultimately earned her MBA and MSED. Curtis was working towards his masters in special education. They were attending a regular church service when the two of them sparked up a conversation about their studies and soon became study partners! Janesville, Wisconsin was the setting of their wedding on July 23, 1983. After sharing pieces of the homemade wedding cake that Dianne baked and decorated herself, the happy couple set off for their honeymoon on a Caribbean cruise. Curtis adopted Dianne’s two children completing their family.

As a family, they enjoyed taking the kids to their condo in FL and fishing in Canada. Oceanside views and lakeside scenery offered the peace, quiet, and relaxation she needed from the demands of working as a school business manager for many districts throughout Wisconsin. Yet, the quiet of nature was quickly over any time Dianne felt that her children were being threatened by anything in the wild! Nothing was safe in her eyes. Snakes, mice, and even bugs were often killed at the hands of her fearless protection! Once when a mouse was killed in a trap, Dianne took a baseball bat to it just to be sure it was good and gone! An avid Trekkie, her children grew up watching episodes on VHS tapes and Star Trek became a family favorite!

Dianne’s life was never a dull moment. Her countless activities and hobbies were ever changing and vast reflecting her beautiful personality and the creative talents she held. In addition to her love of nature, she sought reprieve from the hard work of her professional life sitting at a piano bench. Musically inclined, she was known to sit and play hymns for hours to unwind. She also played the organ and directed the choir in her church! When she started teaching piano lessons, she was quite a perfectionist ensuring that each student valued their gifts and spent ample time practicing! A gift that Dianne shared and is known woven into the family tapestry from her own children and now into the lives of her grandkids is baking and decorating Christmas cookies! Known to be delicious, family, neighbors and friends grew to expect her special tin of cookies every Christmas! Her mouthwatering turtle cake was a family request when planning special occasions. Her knack in the kitchen also included cooking five-star meals from even the most simple of ingredients! Her favorites were her famous goulash and burrito bakes! Dianne also enjoyed sewing and made the grandkids’ clothing as well as stuffed animals. Showcasing a real green thumb in the garden, Dianne’s flowers were the envy of the neighborhood. She knew how to plan so that something was always in bloom and the garden was colorful well into each and every season. Her vegetable garden was an equal match where she planted abundant tomatoes, beans, strawberries, grapes, and asparagus just like her own mother and grandmother had taught her. Dianne would spend a great amount of time each season freezing and canning her fruits of labor to enjoy year round.

Her heart resided in the ability to make lasting impressions whenever family was gathered together. As a mother and grandmother, she loved to plan scavenger hunts and special memories for her family. When it was just Curtis and her at home, she enjoyed challenging him to a game of Scrabble or reading her Bible. She cherished her Heavenly Father and found delight in the closeness and faith-building that occurred being in the scriptures. Dianne was a lover of life. She relished in her years of being a wife, mother, and grandmother. The memories and gifts she shared will be both savored and reflected in the lives of her family for generations to come.

Dianne R. Meyer, of Kalamazoo, formerly of Ft. Atkinson & Whitewater, Wisconsin, died February 15, 2018, at the age of 65 in her home. She was preceded in death by her father, Lloyd Addie and her brother, Jeffrey Addie. Surviving are her husband of 35 years, Curtis Meyer; two children: Brian (Crestalee) Meyer and Dawn (Joel) McCrary; three grandchildren: Autumn (9), Brennan (2) and Samuel (3); her mother, Jeanette Addie; sister, Stacia Star and many nieces and nephews. Cremation will take place. Services will be held Tuesday 4 pm at Betzler Life Story Funeral Home, 6080 Stadium Dr. Kalamazoo (269) 375-2900. A reception will follow in the Life Story Center. Please visit Dianne’s personal web page at www.betzlerfuneralhome.com, where you can archive a favorite memory or photo and sign her online guestbook before coming to the funeral home.