Dixie M. Meyer

Dixie Mildred Meyer was born on June 29, 1933, to William and Malinda Roever, on a farm near Split Rock, Wisconsin in the midst of the Great Depression, as the youngest of three children. Being a child of the Depression had a significant influence on her character. Like so many of that generation, frugality and an abhorrence of waste were distinct traits of her personality. She, like her mother, had a hard time accepting help from anyone. She was always much more comfortable offering help to others than she was accepting it.

It is hard to discuss her life without mentioning her husband of 63 years, Rudy Meyer. They were truly a team, and a significant aspect of her life is her unwavering devotion to, support for, and admiration of him. They loved each other, they appreciated and respected each other, and the dynamic of their marriage provided an environment of security and stability for us kids as we grew up. Rudy passed away in 2015 and Dixie missed him every day.

The WWII generation has become known as the “greatest generation”. But while Dixie and Rudy were too young to be considered part of that generation, they nonetheless exhibited the most admirable traits of that generation. They were hard-working solid citizens who did their best to raise up a family that would then be the next generation of solid citizens. They obeyed the law and exhibited civility and friendliness to everyone they encountered. They honored and cared for their parents as they aged. They did their best to contribute to the greater good in the world.

They raised their children in the church, taught Sunday school, and volunteered at numerous church events. Dixie was the neighborhood contact for several charities and would go door-to-door to raise money for the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, and the March of Dimes. When Rudy operated his own business from 1974 – 1984, she was his bookkeeper, spending almost every night recording transactions in the books, writing checks and reconciling the checkbook, etc.

In her home, nothing ever went to waste. Jeans had the knees patched multiple times until the rest of the fabric was shredded. And when clothes were finally ragged enough that they couldn’t be worn, they weren’t just tossed out; whatever could be salvaged was cut into squares for quilts. Leftovers for dinner were quite common. When she made barbeque sauce, she would use vinegar to rinse out the ketchup bottle to get the last bit out – there wasn’t a shade of red in the bottle when she was done with it. She would use a pencil until it was so short you could barely hold it between your fingers.

She had many interests that were simple and mainly solitary. She loved gardening, raising flowers, doing counted cross stitch, jigsaw puzzles, crypto-quotes, word search, and reading. She enjoyed having a bird feeder and she would keep her bird book and a pair of binoculars near the window so she could look up any unusual birds that happened to land at her feeder. She was protective of the feeder and had an ongoing battle with the squirrels, constantly shooing them away from the feeder.

She was a very protective mother – perhaps not as extreme as today’s so-called “helicopter parents”, but maybe a prototype for them. She whole-heartedly embraced the role of mother and housewife. Today there is a lot of discussion about “Trad Wives” and it seems the topic is discussed somewhat derisively, and of course our culture was quite different 60 – 70 years ago, but even though it was more common in those days for a mom to be at home, she was a professional housewife in the best sense of the word and she put all her energy into maintaining a healthy, nurturing home. She was never heard lamenting that she had missed out on a fulfilling career outside of the home because of the years she had spent taking care of her husband and children.

One of her most admirable traits was how she cared for her family. Her husband Rudy hadn’t retired long before he began suffering health issues, beginning with macular degeneration that started dry but after a few years, when he was about 70, quickly turned wet and degraded his eyesight significantly. At 80 he had triple bypass surgery, and he eventually struggled with failing lungs, heart, and kidneys. As these problems progressed and his health deteriorated, Dixie provided increasing levels of care – to the point where, in her early 80’s, it took a substantial amount of time and energy to make sure he was comfortable and well cared for. But it was because of the efforts she made that she was able to fulfill his desire to remain home to the very end of his life and not end up in a nursing home.

When it came to her own health, however, it was a different matter. Although she had ensured that Dad had excellent care and that he diligently took his medications, did exercises and so forth, when it came to her own health, that discipline evaporated. As stubborn as she was to make sure he followed doctors’ orders, she was equally as stubborn resisting that when it came to her own health.

Dixie Meyer was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and friend. Despite her introverted, reserved nature and her many interests, above all she loved and cherished her people – her husband, her children, her mother, her siblings, her extended family, and her friends. She didn’t have a wide group of friends, but those few that she counted as true friends she greatly treasured.

She is survived by her children Steve (Lisa) Meyer, Scott (Morelia) Meyer, and Wendy (Todd) Miller, grandchildren Melanie Meyer, Amy (Bruce) Flinn, Luisa (Steve Anderson) Meyer, Alex Miller, and Scott Meyer Jr., and great grandchildren Abigail Flinn, Cassie Flinn, and Maxwell Anderson.

Dixie is preceded in death by her parents, husband, sister Margaret Westphal, and brother Donald Roever.

There will be a funeral service on Friday, September 19, 2025 at Wichmann Tri-County Chapel 1592 S Oneida St. Menasha WI 54952. Visitation will be held from 10am to 11am with the service starting at 11. Reverend Daniel Thews will be officiating.

The family would like to thank everyone at Gabriel's Villa, Country Villa Omro and St. Croix Hospice for the care and compassion given to Dixie.

A wife of noble character who can find?

She is worth far more than rubies.

Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.

She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Proverbs 31:10-12, 27