Dennis A. Vande Hey, 63, passed away on Thursday, January 28, 2021, after a long battle with heart failure and other multiple complications that would have sent a lesser man to his grave decades ago. Dennis was born on October 31, 1957 to Eugene and Ethel (Bowers) Vande Hey. On October 1, 1984 he was united in marriage to his late wife Mary Pat (Schnese) Vande Hey.
Beloved Son, Brother, Uncle, God Father, Father, Grandfather, friend, and jokester. Dennis “The Bull” was tough as nails with the kindest heart. He had a smile worth a thousand words and stories to tell for hours. Everyone who came to know him, enjoyed his wry sense of humor.
Dennis graduated from Freedom High School. After graduation, he attended culinary classes at Fox Valley Technical College. He spent many years working as an excellent chef at the Colonial House where he met is beloved wife Mary Pat. In the early years, they enjoyed bowling at the Colonial Lanes and going out dancing together at the Leap Inn. Dennis also worked at Gilbert Paper in Menasha and Imerys in Kimberly.
Dennis always had a deep love for animals and loved tending to his rabbits, chickens, geese, and his two cats Willow and Lightbulb. He called himself a ladies man and joked that the closest ladies in his life had floppy ears, talons, feathers, and whiskers. He also loved being in the woods hunting, he could smell a deer a mile away, and could out fish anyone he met. Every Halloween you could find him dressed in his favorite Pirate costume, “RRRRRRRR-ing” all night long.
Leading up to his final days he never showed any pain or fear, in true Dennis fashion, he continued to tell stories and make us all laugh. He continued to fight until the end. Dennis will be greatly missed by many.
Dennis is survived by his daughters; Jacole (Dominic) Hall, Tracy (Shannon) Vande Voort, and Melanie (Ralph) Segura, grandchildren; Victor, Thorin, Tristin, Danika, Mason and Kyla, his mom Ethel Vande Hey, 5 brothers; Mike (Lynn) Vande Hey, Nicolas (Maura) Vande Hey, Keith Vande Hey, Kevin Vande Hey, and Jeff Vande Hey, special friend Kim Gillis, Godchildren; Jesse Vande Hey and Kendra Pohlman, nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.
Dennis was preceded in death by his dad, Eugene and his wife Mary Pat.
The funeral liturgy for Dennis will be held on Saturday, February 13, 2021 at 11:00 AM at ST. NICHOLAS CATHOLIC CHURCH, W 2037 County Rd S, Freedom. A time of visitation will be held on Saturday from 9:00 AM until the time of the service at the church. Online condolences may be expressed at www.verkuilenfh.com. The funeral service will be livestreamed on the Verkuilen Van Deurzen Funeral Home Facebook page at 11:00 AM.
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