Dale E. Rohde

Dale Rohde, a resident of Brookfield, Wisconsin for the past twenty years, died peacefully at home on Tuesday, January 15, 2014, after a courageous 4 month battle with lymphoma. He was 49 years old.

He was a loving husband to Susan (nee Nelson) for 24 years, and a caring and devoted father to his children Dean, Brenda, and Kyle. Dale was the beloved son of Dorothy (nee Campbell) and the late Allan Rohde, and a dear brother to Elizabeth Sertich (Nicholas) of West Allis, Linda Sowinski (the late Robert) of Mina SD, James Rohde of Apple Valley MN, Allan Rohde (Cheryl) of Wauwatosa, John Rohde (Janice) of Colorado Springs CO, the late Thomas Rohde (April) of Wendell NC, Donna Gagliano (Charles) of Milwaukee, Keith Rohde (Lynette) of Maple Grove MN, Paul Rohde (Joni) of New Berlin, Christopher Rohde of West Allis, and Mark Rohde of West Allis. He was further survived by many nieces, nephews, uncles, aunts and in-laws.

Dale was born in Milwaukee WI, and graduated from West Milwaukee High School. He held many jobs throughout the years, including assistant manager at Super America from 1987 – 1991, paraprofessional at Burleigh Elementary in Brookfield from 2000 – 2005, and machine operator at Supply One Wisconsin in Jackson since 2005. He was also a parent volunteer at Burleigh Elementary, holding the chairperson position for fundraisers Entertainment Book, Boxtops for Education, and Kemps "Give 'em Five". But his most important job was 'Mr. Mom'. He spent 15 years raising his 3 children, and was extremely proud to watch them blossom into responsible young adults.

Dale enjoyed golfing, softball, camping, and playing Sheepshead and cribbage. He was an avid fan of the Packers and Brewers, and he watched practically any sports that ESPN would broadcast. But his passion was always volleyball. He was a player, a parent, a coach and an official.

He played volleyball at West Milwaukee High School from 1979-1981. After high school he spent a lot of time at Bradford Beach. He played many beach tournaments in Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan and Florida, including appearances in the Milwaukee Pro Beach tournament from 1985-1990. He met his future wife at a volleyball tournament at Beacon Bowl in New Berlin, and proposed to Sue at a March of Dimes 'Play Your Way to Paradise' tournament in Puerto Rico in 1987. He continued to play both indoor and outdoor on numerous teams, including mens and co-ed, doubles, triples and sixes. Fun times were had by all at the Mens Open Championships that were held in the Midwest. A special treat was being able to play in summer leagues with his son Kyle for the past few years.

He coached the JV boys team at Brookfield East High School in 1989 and 1990, and coached boys teams ages 12, 14 and 17 at Southwest Volleyball Club from 2006-2009.

Dale's officiating career spans from 1990 to 2013. He has been an official for high school, junior club, and college men's and women's volleyball, including Divisions 1, 2, 3 and NAIA. He also reffed for the Pro Beach Open in Milwaukee. He was involved with Badger Region Volleyball for 18 years. Past responsibilities in the Badger Region include Referee Assigner, Referee Chair and Outdoor Chair. Dale received his Junior National rating in 1998 and his National rating in 2001.

Everything about Dale was large – his 6' 5" height, his big family, his huge group of friends, his booming voice, his generous heart and his desire to help others. Big Daddy. Large and In Charge. The Big Kahauna. Larger than Life.

The family would like to give special thanks to his volleyball family for giving support and laughter to the end.

A visitation will be held at Krause Funeral Home, 21600 West Capitol Drive, Brookfield WI, on Friday January 31, 2014 from 4:00-7:00 PM. A 'Celebration of Life' with a time of sharing will start at 7:00 PM. Tributes and stories will be told by family, friends and co-workers.

In lieu of flowers, memorials in Dale's name may be made to 'Badger Region Volleyball' to support a special boys volleyball event, The Dale Rohde Memorial Tournament. See <a href="http://badgervolleyball.org/dale-rohde-memorial/" target="_blank">http://badgervolleyball.org/dale-rohde-memorial/</a> for details and mailing/Paypal information.