Joseph "Joe" Nabbefeld

Joseph "Joe" Nabbefeld, age 71, born May 14th, 1952 passed away peacefully surrounded by family on January 11th, 2024 after his 2nd battle with cancer. Joe was born to Ted and Jeanne (Spielbauer) Nabbefeld in Appleton, Wisconsin. He married his high school sweetheart Rita Marcks in 1970 and together they shared 53 years of marriage. Joe worked for Pierce Manufacturing for 40 years, serving various roles of building fire trucks. He enjoyed trips to Canada, fishing, hunting, and working on stock cars with his pit crew at WIR. He was a gifted wood worker and made many beautiful pieces over the years. Family would often gather in his garage to admire what he was working on and enjoy a cold beer. Joe was the guy that could figure out how to fix anything!
Joe is survived by his wife, Rita; his two children, Kim Nabbefeld and Jeff Nabbefeld (Heather Reardon); three grandchildren Zachary Nabbefeld (Grace Myhre), Grace Umland (Nick Diny), Payton Reardon (Grace Pelot); two great grandchildren Eve Reardon and Liv Nabbefeld; five siblings, Teddy (Dean) Bann, Becky (Randy) Vande Voort, Jack Nabbefeld, Jim (Laurie) Nabbefeld, Emmy (Steve) Gossens; In-laws Jerry (Terry) Marcks, Bill (Sue) Marcks, Dennis Marcks, Rick Marcks; as well as 20 nieces and nephews and many great nieces and nephews.
Joe is preceded in death by his parents Ted and Jeanne (Spielbauer) Nabbefeld; step-mother Lori Nabbefeld; and brother-in-law Melvin Marcks.
A celebration of Joe's life will be held on Wednesday, January 17, 2024 from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm at Valley Funeral Home, 2211 n. Richmond St., Appleton, WI 54911.
The family would like to thank the Appleton Fire Department for leading an anniversary celebration back in November. The family would also like to express gratitude to key members of Joe's care team Karissa, Ashley, and Marianna.
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