Donald Dennis Deau, 94, of Dallas, Texas, and a former Rhinelander resident, passed away on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2022, at his home in Dallas, Texas.
Don was born on Feb. 20, 1928, in Rhinelander.
He was a sales representative for 37 years, beginning in 1953 with Tremco Mfg. Company of Cleveland, Ohio. In 1955 he joined Rhinelander Paper Company and moved to Dallas, Texas in 1956 as the Rhinelander representative. The Rhinelander Paper Company was sold to St. Regis Paper Company in 1955. Don transferred to Long Beach, California in 1968, Dayton, Ohio in 1971 and Chicago in 1974. He remained with the Rhinelander Division until 1978 when St. Regis sold the Rhinelander mill. He then joined the Printing Papers Division of St. Regis and returned to Dallas in 1981 with the Electronic Communication Division. In 1984, because of the St. Regis-Champion International Corporation merger, Don joined the Champion organization and remained with Champion until 1988 when his group was sold to the Dupont Specialty Imaging Media Inc. (DSIMI).
He retired from Dupont on July 31, 1990.
Donald graduated from Rhinelander High School in 1946 and was a 1953 graduate of Marquette University with a Bachelor of Science Degree from the College of Business Administration.
He served in the U.S. Army Field Artillery from September 1946 until March 1948 when he was honorably discharged at Camp Stoneman, California after serving for one year in the army occupation at Nara, Japan as a part of the eighth Field Artillery Battalion attached to the twenty-fifth Infantry Division.
Don never married and is survived by other relatives and friends.
He was preceded in death by his father, Dennis Deau Jr., in 1970, hismother, Amelia Deau in 2002, brother, Thomas Deau in 1935, and his sister, Gloria Deau in 2014.
Don was an avid golfer and was a member of Brookhaven Country Club in Dallas, Texas.
He loved the Green Bay Packers and was a proud shareholder and charter member of the Packer Partners Club of Champions and a charter donor to the Packers Hall of Fame.
The visitation for Don will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2022, at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church, located at 125 E. King Street, Rhinelander from noon until the 1 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial. Fr. Chris Kemp will officiate.
Interment will take place at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Cemetery.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Hildebrand Funeral Home & Cremation Specialists, 24 E. Davenport Street, Rhinelander, Wisconsin, 54501, 715-365-4343. Everyone is invited to sign the guestbook or leave an online condolence at www.hildebrandrussfh.com.
The Northwoods River News | Walker Communications, LLC 232 S. Courtney Street, Rhinelander, WI 54501 | Office (715) 365-6397 | Fax (715) 365-6361
Corporate billing office: The Lakeland Times / Lakeland Printing Inc. | P.O. Box 790, Minocqua, WI 54548 | (715) 356-5236 | Fax (715) 358-2121 Members of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association, Wisconsin Community Papers, Rhinelander Area Chamber of Commerce, Minocqua Area Chamber of Commerce
