Dean Russell Myers, 97, died Monday, July 16, 2018, at Rapid City Regional Hospital.

Dean was born on March 22, 1921, in Hudson, SD, the son of Jay and Anne (Swanson) Myers. He grew up in the Dixon community and graduated from Dallas High School in 1938. Dean attended South Dakota State University and worked in Minnesota prior to entering the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1942. He was stationed in Pearl Harbor, HI, during World War II and honorably discharged from the army as a 2nd Lt., Infantry.

Dean married Marvel A. Sausele in Jackson, MN, on April 21, 1945. They were happily married for 66 years had two children, Ronald and Marilyn. In 1950, Dean became the rural mail carrier at Dixon, SD. In 1959, he became a life underwriter for Aid Association for Lutherans (AAL) and the family moved to Rapid City. In 1967, Dean was appointed to manage the AAL Agency for western South Dakota and Nebraska. While in Rapid City, Dean was president of the Black Hills Life Underwriters Association, the South Dakota State Life Underwriters Association and the South Dakota State Fraternal Congress. In 1977, he was transferred to Fergus Falls, MN. He managed the AAL Agency there until he retired in 1986 and moved with Marvel to Santa Fe, NM. In 1992, Dean and Marvel returned to Rapid City, spending the winter months for several years in Mesa, AZ.

Dean was known throughout his life for his steadfast character and sharp wit. He made friends easily and frequently, and always had a friendly word for anyone he encountered. He was very involved in his church and devoted to his wife and family. He had a strong work ethic dating back to his childhood on the farm throughout the Depression and valued honest effort and plain dealing. He was blessed with a prodigious memory that served him well. (His family will miss that aspect of him, which they depended upon for so many things.) He travelled widely, seeing most of the country over the years, and continued to travel well into his 90s. Dean will be remembered for his strength of spirit, his Christian faith, his kindness and his gentlemanly bearing.

Dean was preceded in death by his wife, Marvel, in 2011; his parents, Jay and Anne Myers; his brothers, Max Myers and Keith Myers; and his son in law, Dennis Bendt.

He is survived by his daughter, Marilyn Bendt, Rapid City; his son, Ronald Myers, Santa Fe, NM; four grandchildren: Holly Myers (Thomas Gray), Santa Fe, NM; Elizabeth (David) Wofford, Sahuarita, AZ; Andrew Bendt, Ft. Collins, CO; and Alexander Bendt, Grand Island, NE; one great-granddaughter, Jillian Wofford, Sahuarita, AZ; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 29, 2018, at Osheim & Schmidt Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on Monday, July 30, at Bethlehem Lutheran Church. Interment with military honors will follow at Black Hills National Cemetery.

A memorial has been established to Bethlehem Lutheran Church Vision Fund.

Friends may sign his online guest register at www.osheimschmidt.com.