Dean Roy Wiemken, 91, peacefully passed on January 13, 2023. He is survived by his loving wife of 66 years, Danelle (Dani) Patricia Wiemken and three daughters, Julie Raimondi, Janet Freeman and Jane Haxton. Dean was one of six children to Henry and Emma Wiemken. He was preceded in death by three of his brothers, Lynn Wiemken, Edward Wiemken and Albert Wiemken. His surviving sister is Yvonne Dibble and brother Sterling Wiemken.
Dean was born in 1931 and raised in Oakland, California. Dean and his brothers grew up working in their father’s automotive garage in Alameda. He served in the Air National Guard at the Naval Air Station Alameda in the 129th and 144th squadrons maintaining equipment and vehicles for the motor pool from November 1948 to December 1956. He studied at the University of California Berkeley and at UCLA, where he excelled in Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering. Dean married Danelle Hogan on February 3, 1957. He and his bride moved to Southern California to start a family. He began working at Basic Tool, his uncle Ludwig’s Engineering and Tooling Design company located in Gardena.
In 1961, Dean and Dani moved back to the San Francisco Bay area, residing in Fremont, to embark on an exciting new career at Lockheed Missiles & Space Company. Dean proved to be indispensable and a legendary Mechanical Design Engineer for 38 years at Lockheed. He built and ran the iconic family Christmas tree lot “Fremont Trees” for 40 years. Dean and Dani had three daughters, six grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. He and Dani moved to Oakdale to live near the Stanislaus River, where they retired. Dean loved to fish, worked on various projects, and spent cherished time with his loved ones. He attended River Oak Grace Community Church in Oakdale. Dean was an amazing person and was fondly known for his numerous adventurous, funny stories of growing up rebuilding cars, racing cars, rebuilding boats, fishing, camping, waterskiing and numerous other activities with family and friends.
Dean will deeply be missed by all who knew him. To have known him was to love him.
Interment at Oakdale Citizens Cemetery on January 24, 2023. A memorial Celebration of Life with the date to be determined will be at the River Oak Grace Community Church, Oakdale, CA.
The Oakdale (Calif.) Leader
The Riverbank (Calif.) News
Jan. 25, 2023
