Richard H. “Dick” Middendorf, 94, of Lincoln NE

Richard H. “Dick” Middendorf, 94, of Lincoln, died on December 22, 2016, at Gateway Vista Senior Living in Lincoln.

Visitation will be Wednesday, Dec. 28, from 4-8 pm at Lincoln Memorial Funeral Home. Services will be Thursday, Dec. 29, 10:30 am, at Christ Lutheran Church, Lincoln, with the Rev. Dr. Luke Schnake officiating. Burial will follow at the Lincoln Memorial Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to Lincoln Lutheran Schools or Concordia University, Nebraska. Lincoln Memorial Funeral Home of Lincoln is in charge of arrangements.

Dick was born August 29, 1922, in Bruning, NE, to Henry and Katie (Duis) Middendorf. He graduated from Bruning High School, and served in the army in the final years of World War II, receiving an honorable discharge in 1946. Dick was united in marriage to Della Mae (Lautenschlager) Middendorf on January 2, 1945. To this union four children were born. The couple lived in Lincoln, and then in Lyons, NE, where Dick worked for the Soil Conservation Service, and then as a rural mail carrier with the USPS, serving in that capacity for 30 years until his retirement. He was also a school bus driver, and a member of various local organizations including the summer baseball program, the American Legion and VFW, and the Lyons industrial development committee. Dick’s gift of writing led to many special feature articles in the Sioux City Journal, and the Omaha World Herald. Following retirement in 1986, the couple moved back to Lincoln, where Dick continued working part-time as a courier for Union Bank & Trust for another 24 years. While in Lyons, Dick served his congregation of St. John Lutheran as Sunday School superintendent and elder. At Trinity Lutheran, Lincoln, he volunteered as a greeter and was also a member of various boards and Bible study groups. His most recent church membership has been with Christ Lutheran in Lincoln.

Survivors of the immediate family include his four children and spouses: Joy (Rick) Golden; Lyle (Nancy) Middendorf; Larry (Penny) Middendorf; and Mark (Julie) Middendorf, 10 grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his wife of 51 years, Della Mae; his siblings & their spouses: Ella (Kenneth) Stubbs, Lenore (Boyd) Biggs, Carl (Merle) Middendorf, and Delma (Leon) Bruning.

Richard Middendorf