Theodore Ted F. Dettmer Sr.

Theodore "Ted" Francis Dettmer, Sr., 89, of Phoenix, AZ, passed away on August 4, 2010. Ted was born on June 26, 1921 in Keokuk, Iowa, the son of Sylvia Jagels and Thedore Martin Dettmer. Ted grew up in West Point, Ill. and in 1937 his family moved to Phoenix. He graduated from Phoenix Union High School in 1938. After graduating from Phoenix College in 1940, he returned to Illinois to help his grandfather on the family farm. He married Laurel Jean (Jeanne) Thompson on June 28, 1941 in Carthage, Ill. and they shared 65 years together. In 1955 Ted and Jeanne and their 5 children moved to Arizona in their Chevy station wagon. Mr. Dettmer was a custodian at Brophy College Prep for 25 years. In 2004 he was inducted into the Brophy Sports Hall of Fame for his support of school athletics. In 1997, he was awarded the St. Francis Xavier Award for outstanding service to the parish. He was active in St. Vincent de Paul Society, a lifetime member of the Knights of Columbus and served on the Phoenix College Alumni Board. He was an avid baseball fan from his children's Little League to the Chicago Cubs. Ted never met a stranger and could almost always find a connection to everyone he met. He loved to tell family stories, trace genealogy and solve crossword puzzles. As Ted said about his life, "I always tried to help someone." He was truly a man who lived his life in kindness and service to others. He was preceded in death by his wife Jeanne Dettmer, his parents, sister Gloria Roland, brother, Louis Dettmer, daughter, Mary Heideman, grandson, Theodore Dettmer, III, and granddaughter, Ann Marie Bell. Survivors include daughter Shirley (Larry) Bagley, of Monahans, TX, son Ted (Anita) Dettmer, Jr., of Dallas, TX, daughters Kathryn (Robert) Bell, of Fallbrook, CA, and Teresa (Tim) Oltersdorf of Fort Worth, TX, son-in-law Tom Heideman, eleven grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren, his sister Joan Whiting and brother Don (Joan) Dettmer. A visitation will be held on Thursday, August 12, 2010 from 5-8 PM at A.L. Moore Grimshaw Mortuary, 710 W. Bethany Home Rd., Phoenix. The Rosary will start at 7 PM. Services will be held on Friday, August 13, 2010 at 10 AM at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, 4715 N. Central Avenue, Phoenix. Entombment will follow at St. Francis Catholic Cemetery, 2033 N. 48th St., Phoenix. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the St. Vincent de Paul Society, P.O. Box 13600, Phoenix, AZ 85002 or Brophy College Prep, 4701 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85012.