Dale D. Wille - Spring Valley

Dale D. Wille, 72, of Spring Valley, died Wednesday morning, May 2, 2012, at his home.

Dale was born March 28, 1940, at Hand Hospital in Hartley, Iowa, the son of Delmer and Flora (Recher) Wille. He was baptized and confirmed at St. John’s Lutheran Church in May City, Iowa. Dale was raised on a farm near May City and attended country school through the 8th grade when he transferred to Hartley High School along with friends from St. John’s and the May City area. While at Hartley High School, he participated in basketball, football, FFA, was an honor student a member of the National Honor Society and was elected president of his senior class. He then attended Mankato State College and was later a 1964 graduate of Iowa State University with a B.S. degree in landscape architecture. He worked two summers while in college at Smoky Mountain National Park as an assistant landscape architect. Following graduation, he took his first job with Midwest Planning and Research in Minneapolis, where he worked on site design, drainage and grading plans, development of master plans to be used for long range planning, trailhead development and trail corridors with environmental consciousness and sound development planning. Most recently, he was self-employed as Dale Wille Associates in Spring Valley.

Dale was involved in many special projects including the state capitol grounds in Bismarck, N.D., International Peace Garden master planning in North Dakota, and landscape development with the flood control project in Rochester. He was involved with the Preston-Forestville trail, Trout Run trail in Preston, the Harmony and Preston Trailhead master plan, the Spring Valley in-town trail development and the Joint Powers Trail Taskforce in surrounding area communities.

He married Judith Churchill on July 11, 1970, at the First Congregational Church in Spring Valley. The couple made their home in the Twin Cities area and later in Spring Valley.

Dale was a member of Faith United Methodist Church in Spring Valley, the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Iowa State Alumni Association, the Spring Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Historic Bluff Country Tourism Association. He also organized and directed the Spring Valley Tourism Information Center for the first three years.

He is survived by his wife, Judith; two sons, Matthew Dale (Rachel) Wille of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Mark Andrew (Jennifer) Wille of Woodbury; one daughter, Kathryn Skeie of Pine City; two granddaughters, Alissa and Sydney Skeie; three brothers, Daryl (Muriel) Wille of Tracey, Calif., Dr. Jerry (Susan) Wille of Tama, Iowa, and Michael (Michelle) Wille of Ankeney, Iowa; and many nieces, nephews and grandnieces.

He was preceded in death by his parents; one brother, Wayne; and sister, Susan.

The funeral will be held at 1 p.m., Saturday, May 5, at Faith United Methodist Church, with Rev. Beth Perez officiating. Burial will be in Frankford Cemetery rural Spring Valley at a later date.

Friends may call at the Thauwald Funeral Home in Spring Valley from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and at the church on Saturday an hour before the service.

Online condolences can be left a www.thauwaldfuneralhomes.com