Dick E. Ballwahn, 64, of Plymouth, Wis., passed away peacefully early Wednesday morning, April 29, 2015, at Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice.
The son of the late Kenneth and Fern (Granger) Ballwahn, Dick was born April 5, 1951, in Viroqua. He grew up in Wilton and graduated from Royall High School in Elroy. On October 19, 1974, he married Kathleen Schroeder at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Wilton.
Dick was employed by Schultz Brothers stores in his early years and finally settled in Plymouth in 1979, where he managed the downtown store until 1982, when the new Schultz Brothers Family Store was built on the east side of town (currently Plymouth Furniture). He completed his 20-year retail store management career in Sheboygan with the close of the Prange Way store in 1996. He was further employed with the Polar Ware Co. (currently Vollrath Co.) with an 18-year career in sales. Dick was a loyal employee and loved meeting new people and exchanging conversation with all he met. If you met Dick, you were no longer a stranger. He had the uncanny ability to connect with the people, who would share their own stories and accounts of their lives to him without a second thought.
He was a faithful member of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Plymouth and was on the usher’s team for several years. Dick also belonged to the Jaycees and was a charter member of the Plymouth Optimist Club. During his years as store manager, he also belonged to the Plymouth Chamber of Commerce and served on the Plymouth Library board during building expansion.
Dick loved hunting and fishing with his dad during his youth and enjoyed watching all Wisconsin sports teams. He was an avid golfer and always strived to reach that elusive “hole-in-one.”
He is survived by his wife, Kathleen; two children, Jessica (Jon) Daul of Green Bay and Jason Ballwahn of Appleton (special friend Leah Enking); two grandchildren, Kaitlyn and Hailey Daul; and five brothers and sisters, Larry (Arlis) Ballwahn of Wilton, Carol Thompson of Apple Valley, Minn., Patti (Ron) Parker of Onalaska, Kim (Rosalynda) Ballwahn of Wilton and Jeff (Jenny) Ballwahn of Shawano, Wis.
Dick is also survived by many other brothers- and sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Ron.
A Mass of Christian Burial was May 4 at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Plymouth. Father Dan Volkert, pastor of the church, officiated. Burial was in St. John the Baptist Catholic Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund is being established in Dick’s name.
The Suchon Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Plymouth served the family. For online condolences, please visit www.suchonfh.com.
Dick’s family would like to extend a grateful and heartfelt thanks to the staff at Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice for their kindness and care. Dick will always be remembered as a wonderful husband, loving father to his children, and a caring “papa” to his grandchildren.
