David Lee Hillmer was born March 11, 1957, in Sac City, IA and died July 26, 2015, exactly 39 years to the day that his younger brother died.

   David, the son of Melvin and Eloise (Johnson) Hillmer was baptized April 7, 1957 by Reverend W.C. Nassen and later confirmed his faith at Emanuel-St. John Lutheran Church in Lytton.  He graduated from Lytton High School in 1975.  On June 12, 1976, he married the love of his life, Rebecca  Larsen, and later welcomed two children, Rick and Morgan.

   David worked for Darold Matter of Lytton in high school, and for the first years of his married life assisted in his grain and cattle operations.  In 1978, David had the opportunity to begin farming ground owned by Rebecca’s grandparents, Bob and Ruth Johnson.  But, before he committed to that major investment, he moved to Minneapolis for six months.  There he worked with his uncle Dean Johnson installing utility pipelines.  He also worked at Noble Manufacturing as a late shift welder, improving on a skill he had learned in high school.

   Dave bought his first ten sows in March of 1979, and continued to expand the size of his hog and grain operations until his vision worsened from Multiple Sclerosis.  Due to his vision loss he was declared legally blind and was forced to retire from farming in 1998.  Having always been a hard worker, he found himself unable to remain at home, so he worked for Tom Lake in his nursery business, as a janitor at the Rec Center, and as a dishwasher at the Main Café, making many friends along the way.  He walked downtown almost every day to discuss news of the world with his coffee group.

   In earlier years, Dave enjoyed family time with the Hillmer clan on Sunday afternoons, playing cards and games.  He was an avid bowler and belonged to several leagues.  He even bowled several times after losing his vision, and scored higher than sighted persons!  In later years, he was able to take many vacations with his spouse and children, and was looking forward to a river cruise in Germany next month.

   David and Rebecca moved to Adel, IA in October of 2011, wanting to be closer to their son and his family.  He joined a new coffee group, and continued honing his own unique brand of humor.  Even though his health and vision continued to decline, and he was unable to participate in activities he previously enjoyed, he never complained.

   David is survived by his spouse Rebecca; his son Richard (Shasta) Hillmer, their children Annika and Levi of Adel, IA and his daughter Lt. Morgan Fowler of Miami, FL and her fiancée, Lt. Hans de Groot, of Corpus Christie, TX.  He also leaves behind his brother, Arlyn (Virginia) Hillmer of Lytton, IA; his sisters: Karen (Randy) Hanson of Callender, IA, and Cindy (Larry) Finley of Auburn, IA; mother-in-law Janice Larsen of Sac City, IA; brothers-in-law: Bill Larsen of Council Bluffs, IA, and Robert (Karla) Larsen of E. Moline, IL; sister-in-law Julie (Randy) Magnani of Truro, IA; and many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.  He was preceded in death by his parents; brother Ricky; and father-in-law Dick Larsen.


   The family requests memorials to the Iowa Blind Society for the purchase of book readers and tapes.