Dean Emory Nordby
PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL - Dean Emory Nordby, 78 years old, passed away on September 4th, 2023, surrounded by his loving family. He was born on September 3rd, 1945, on a farm just outside of Winger, MN. He was the fifth of eight kids, and as the first boy, was the apple in his mother Opal’s eye. When he was in middle school, his family moved to South Milwaukee, WI where he graduated from South Milwaukee High School in 1963. He entered the Marine Corps and served in the Airborne Recon Division out of Pearl Harbor, HI leaving the Corps in 1967. Upon his first return back to Milwaukee he met the love of his life, Kathleen (Ihlenfeld) Nordby. They married on March 9th, 1968. Together they moved to a hog farm in Long Prairie, MN where they began raising their two children Christine and Jason while Dean worked as a lineman. After a short stint in Saudi Arabia, the family moved back to southern Minnesota and purchased a grocery store.
As that market changed he returned to work as a lineman where he helped install the power grid in the Arrowhead of Minnesota, all the while enjoying his passion for the outdoors. By the Summer of 1981 he realized that he didn’t want to be hanging lines in the Northwoods into old age and went back to school, graduating with his bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth. He then moved back to the Milwaukee area to work for Hi-Ranger, a utility fleet and equipment company, using his vast knowledge in this arena to become a national sales leader and creating lifelong friendships around the country. While continuing to work, he and Kathleen moved back to the Northwoods, first in WI, then MN.
After his retirement, as his ability and passion for the outdoors became less important than being in better weather, he enjoyed the remainder of his retirement years first in Kingman, AZ and finally in Panama City Beach, FL.
Dean is survived by daughter Christine (Frank) Vollmerhausen, Panama City Beach, FL and son Jason (Jody) Nordby, Lake Mills, WI. He is further survived by four of his sisters Janet Boelter, Donna Darling, Brenda Nelson, Connie (Jim) Bronstad, brother Jeffery (Kim) Nordby and many nieces, nephews and brother & sisterin-laws. He cherished his five grandchildren Jacob Olmstead, Michael Tourville, Mackenzie (Hudson) McGinnis, Benton Nordby and Brandt Nordby, and 2 great-grandsons John Marie and Peter McGinnis. He was preceded in death by his wife of 53 years Kathleen on January 29, 2022.
In lieu of flowers, I believe Dean would appreciate donations to Covenant Care Hospice, Panama City Beach, FL. Their donation web address is: Donate Now (choosecovenant.org)