Patricia Acker Dean
MIDDLETON–Patricia Acker Dean died Oct. 6, 2021, at her home in Middleton. Patty was born in Madison on April 4, 1960, to Vincent F. and Theresa M. Acker. She and her future husband, Michael J. Dean, met in the hallway of Middleton High School in the fall of 1975. With a surname that filled two homerooms, Patty became interested in the boy from Madison’s east side who was unlikely to be a relation. That boy promptly asked her to homecoming. Patty and Mike were wed on Oct. 5, 1984, and moved shortly thereafter to Dallas, TX, to start their respective careers in contract hospitality sales and commercial real estate. After a further stint in Massachusetts, they moved back to Middleton in 1995, where they raised their three children.
Her cancer diagnosis in 2005 didn’t slow her down. Seemingly with unlimited practical knowledge, energy, and creativity, she and Mike started several successful businesses and volunteered at Elm Lawn School, St. Bernard Parish and in various local clubs. Assembling an extensive tool collection, Patty could be often seen wearing a tool belt (with authority). As one relative said, “she could do more in one day than most do in a month!” With a keen interest in crafts, she was an accomplished sewer and, later in life, began to quilt with a long arm quilting machine. Her quilt treasures have found homes in many states and often for people she hardly knew. Her strawberry jam was legendary, as was her salsa.
She loved being at her Little St. Germain Lake home that she designed, riding the Vilas County bike trails, boating, fish frys, family, aerobic classes, traveling to visit her children and grandchildren, Packers, and all things Badgers. Usually soft-spoken, some say she was the loudest fan in Section E. Always calm, with inexhaustible patience, she made everyone around her better. In the last three years she fought the cancer with courage and grace, spending many days in clinics and treatment rooms in Madison and at Mayo Clinic. As she did all her life, she outperformed expectations time and time again.
Patty is survived by her husband, Michael; brothers, Charles (Kathy) Acker, Ronald Acker, Steven (Amondee) Acker and Bradley Acker; sisters, Karen Acker and Heidi (Rick) Yelk; mother-in-law, Margaret C. Dean, Naples, FL.; daughters, Dr. Diana Dean Evans (Dr. Timothy), Tampa, FL., and Darcy Dean Miller (Matthew), Edina, MN.; son, Joseph M. Dean, Nashville, TN; sister-in-law, Ellen Dean McNeary (James), Rosemount, MN; and brother-in-law, Kyle C. Dean, Milwaukee. She is further survived by her grandchildren, Ella P. Evans and Edward S. Evans, Tampa, FL.; nieces, Margaret and Bridget McNeary; and nephews, Cyril and Jack Yelk. Patty was preceded in death by her father, Vincent Acker; mother, Theresa; and sister, Eileen Bouquet (Brad).
Visitation will be held at Gunderson West Funeral and Cremation Care, 7435 University Ave., Middleton, from 9 a.m. -12 p.m. on Oct. 16, 2021. A celebration of life will be held at the funeral home at 12 p.m. on Saturday, with Father Brian Wilk presiding, followed by a reception at the family home. Burial will take place at Resurrection Cemetery at a later date.
The family wishes to thank the dedicated professionals at SSM Hospice, as well as the many friends whose constant support the family will never forget.
In lieu of flowers, memorials in Patty’s name may be made to the St. Bernard Middleton Parish Center Renovation fund or to Camp Gray (Reedsburg). Online condolences may be made at gundersonfh.com.
“A man is in love, how do I know?
He came a walk with me, and he told me so
In a song he sang, and then I knew
A man is in love with you.
A man is in love, how did I hear?
I heard him talk too much whenever you're near
He called your name when his eyes were closed
A man is in love and he knows.
A man is in love, how did I guess?
I figured it out while he was watching you dress
He'd give you his all, if you'd but agree
A man is in love and he's me.”
