Allen D. Meyer

Allen D. Meyer, 89, of West Fargo, North Dakota, died Monday, June 29, 2015 at Sheyenne Crossings in West Fargo under the care of Hospice of the Red River Valley. Mr. Meyer was born 13 June 1926 in Fargo, North Dakota to Alfred and Marguerite (Dieterich) Meyer. He grew up on the family dairy farm that his father established in 1923 that was located a mile southeast of West Fargo. Allen attended West Fargo public schools and graduated West Fargo High School in the Class of 1944 where he was a member of the North Dakota State Football championship team (1942) and the North Dakota State Basketball championship team in 1942. Allen enlisted in the U.S. Army after graduation from high school and completed basic training at Fort McClelland, Alabama with additional training at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. After completing training, Allen was assigned to the 97th Infantry Division and later the 1st Cavalry Division where he service in the Pacific Theater. He was posted in the Philippines and was a member of the assault force that prepared to invade Japan when the war ended. He then served as a member of the U.S. Occupation Force in Japan and was promoted to the rank of Technical Sergeant before being discharged from the Army in 1946. Upon his discharge from the Army, Allen returned to West Fargo to rebuild the family dairy herd that was sold by his father in 1941 due to ill health. Allen ultimately assumed operation of the farm with his younger brother Robert and rebuilt and operated the Meyer Guernsey Farm. During the operation of the farm, established one of the most renowned dairy herds in the region and he owned the Guernsey cow (Barnes Chief's Sally) that set a world record for the annual production of butterfat. After selling his dairy herd in 1961, Allen became a field representative and the chief genetic classifier for the American Jersey Cattle Club until his retirement from that organization. For his work with agriculture, he was inducted into the Order of Honorary Kentucky Colonels. Allen married Eunice Ruth Neuschwander on 17 September 1947 and they were happily married until Eunice's death in 1999. They had three sons, Kent, Lawrence, and David. He later married Arlyn Rice in 2000 and they were married until her death in 2009. Allen is survived by his sons Kent and David and his step-children Reta, Renee, Rick and Rosemary. He is additionally survived by his grandchildren Marguerite, Alexander, Elizabeth, James, and Katlin. He is also survived by two great-grand children (Alexander and Aaron), a sister (Elinor), and a brother (Gary). Allen was preceded in death by his parents and his siblings Lawrence, Emily, and Robert and his son Lawrence. Memorial Service: 1:00pm Thursday, July 2, 2015, Community Presbyterian Church, West Fargo. Burial: 11:00am Monday, July 6, 2015 at the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery in Mandan. West Funeral Home & Life Tribute Center westfuneralhome.com