Dixie Ann Guldner

Guldner, Dixie Ann (Milne)
79, of Mesa, AZ passed away on December 23, 2013. Dixie Guldner died on December 23, 2013, peacefully in her sleep. Dixie was born in Hanna, Wyoming, July 17, 1934 the only child of Jack and Florence Milne. Her early school was in Hanna and she started organ lessons at age 3. The family moved to Rawlins, Wyoming where she graduated high school. She was organist during those years at the First Methodist Church. She won a music scholarship to Indiana University where she studied organ and harp. She later transferred to the University of Denver where she became university organist as well as organist for University Park Methodist Church. She received a fellowship to study in the music department at Union Theological Seminary in New York and while there played organ at St. John the Divine, largest cathedral in America, and at the famous Riverside Methodist Church. Dixie gave organ concerts throughout the United States for many years and played harp with several symphony orchestras. She obtained a Masters Degree in Religious Education and Counseling at the Iliff School of Theology in Denver and after graduation became a faculty member as Instructor in church music and worship. She was editor of Music Ministry Magazine for the Methodist Church for many years. In 1963 she married Claude Guldner a Marriage & Family Therapist. She obtained a Certificate in Family Therapy at the Evergreen Institute in Denver and joined him in teaching at the University of Colorado Medical School. She and Claude studied with Masters and Johnson in 1968 and became sex therapists. In 1971 the family moved to Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario to develop a training program in Family Therapy. They became pioneers in the family and sex therapy fields in Canada and helped unify the Canadian family field bringing it into the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Dixie served two terms on the National Board, and was President of the Ontario Association. Upon retirement in 1991 she moved to Mesa, AZ and developed her third career as an artist, doing pastels and becoming most popular for her uniquely carved and painted gourds. She won a number of national and state awards. In Payson, her second home, she was part of the Artists of the Rim art gallery. During the last two years she was much involved in the American Association of University Women and worked on issues of social injustice and advancement of women. She is survived by her husband Claude, son Jeff and wife Sydney and granddaughters Kiri and Erin, son Gregory and wife Amy and their son Gavin and daughter McKenna. Rather than flowers memorial contributions may be made to Association of University Women Scholarship Fund sent to Rhysa Davis, 1148 Leisure World, Mesa, AZ 85206.