Rodney J. Means

Rodney J. Means

Rodney Jerome Means, 79, formerly of Gordonville, passed away with his loving wife at his side on Thursday, May 20, 2021 at Garden Spot Village after a lengthy illness. He was the husband of Gwendolyn Estella McNutt. Born in Rothschild, WI, he was the son of the late Eugene and Vernette Hintz Means, and was preceded in death by his brother Darrell. Rodney graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering and went on to earn a Master's degree from the University of Minnesota in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Throughout his professional career he had been employed with Control Data in Minneapolis, MN, Motorola in Tempe, AZ, and IBM in Tucson, AZ, from which he retired in 2000. During his employment, Rodney was granted 60 patents. He was also a prolific and self-taught musician; his musical career started as a young boy playing drums. As a teen, he performed on a radio show in Wausau, WI, with a band called The Lavenders. He toured with The Lavenders throughout the Midwest for 2 years. He had an innate ability to play music by ear and could play anything with strings. Rodney was an excellent vocalist and songwriter, both for himself and for other musicians. He made records in Wisconsin and Nashville. He loved nothing more than to be on stage performing. His other hobbies included hunting and fishing. He is survived by his wife of almost 60 years, Gwen, and their 3 children, Mark (daughter-in-law Carol) Means, Michelle (son-in-law Michael) Stangl, and Michael (fiance Paige Parisi) Means. Rodney was very proud of his two grandchildren, Paul Stangl and Courtney (grandson-in-law Ben) Cook, who shared his love of music and performing. Also surviving are his step-grandson Danryn and step-great-grandson Connor and his sister Ralene (brother-in-law Joe) Cerise. shiveryfuneralhome.com