Dorothy Lucille Brueggeman

Dorothy Lucille (Wheeler) Brueggeman was born on September 12, 1930, in Des Moines, Iowa, to Earl and Leona (Sanderson) Wheeler. Her siblings included an older brother, Charles; a younger brother, Dennis; and a sister, Barbara.

After graduating from high school, Dorothy moved to Chicago, IL, with her family. She attended night school to sharpen her skills as a secretary, a career that led her to serve in many interesting offices and settings over the years. Her work included a stint at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., with the Army Signal Corps, as well as positions at Sun Chemical Corporation and Sunbeam Corporation in Chicago. After relocating to Colorado, she worked at Foster Auto Supply and later at Stearns-Roger Engineering.

It was during this time that she met and married the love of her life, Bob Brueggeman, a young farmer from Yuma County, Colorado. They were married on December 29, 1957, in Des Moines. Dorothy joined Bob in his Lutheran faith at Calvary Lutheran Church. They were blessed with four children: Fritz, Susan, Andrew, and Kristine.

They lived and farmed in the Yuma and Otis areas for ten years, thoroughly enjoying the social life of the community, until severe weather wiped out the corn, wheat, and beet crops. In 1971, they moved to Wray, where Bob formed his own company cleaning feedlots and later worked in independent trucking, moving modular homes throughout the United States. During this time, Dorothy worked at the Yuma County Abstract Company.

In 1983, Bob and Dorothy moved to Denver. Dorothy worked at Transamerica, an advertising agency, and later served as Senior Administrator for the State of Colorado Vocational Rehabilitation program, helping blind, deaf, and other individuals with disabilities find meaningful employment.

Bob passed away in 2000, and a year later Dorothy retired and made her home in Wray. Among the many activities and organizations she enjoyed were singing in the church choir, performing in several productions with the Cliff Dwellers Acting and Singing Society, Las Viente Women’s Club and Miriam Guild, and traveling with family and friends. She also loved reading and checked out many books from the Wray Public Library.

Dorothy was preceded in death by her parents, husband Bob, brother Charles (Phyllis), brother Dennis, brothers-in-law Virgil (Doris) and Dale, and sister-in-law Wilma.

She is survived by her children Fritz (Audrey), Susan, Andy (Tosha), Kristine (Mike) Peterson, grandchildren Leigh Baldwin (Zach), Alanna Brueggeman, Kane (Sarah) Salisbury, Amethyst Riggs, Jalen Peterson, Maty (Johnny) Kalos and Karissa Peterson, great-grandchildren Carter and Caroline Baldwin, sister-in-law Gail, and many nieces and nephews, and extended family she felt close to.