Kathleen E. (Dobson) "Kay" Rider

Kathleen E. “Kay” Rider, age 95 of Prairie du Chien passed away Friday, June 17, 2022, at Prairie Maison in Prairie du Chien. She was born in Boscobel, WI on September 24, 1926, the daughter of Luverne and Florence (Mercer) Dobson. She went to nursing school and worked at Deaconess Hospital in Milwaukee before moving to Prairie du Chien in 1947. Kay married Karl Rider on November 22, 1947, at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Prairie du Chien. She began working in Prairie du Chien at the General Hospital and eventually Memorial Hospital, where she became the director of nursing. She received her bachelor's degree at the University of Dubuque and originated the CNA program that is now taught through Southwest Technical College in Fennimore, WI. She also worked at the Convalescent Center in Prairie du Chien before returning to Memorial Hospital in home health until retirement. Kay’s husband Karl preceded her in death on June 10, 2000. She was an active member of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church and was also involved in the American Cancer Society and the Girl Scouts. She was an avid knitter and knitted many caps for newborn babies in the Prairie du Chien area. Kay was a selfless person whose life revolved around caring for others. She is survived by her children Nancy (Glenn) Speich, James (Lynn) Rider, Deborah Rider, and Peggy (Tom) Lipinski; her grandchildren Michelle (Mike) Bolz, Michael (Shelly), Zachary, Adam, and Daniel Rider, Nathan (Maddie) Goree, Beth (David) Anderson, Steven (Teresa) and Meghan Lipinski and Lisa Beesecker; and her great-grandchildren Morgan and Benjamin Bolz, Kaitlyn Buenzli, and Charlotte and Simon Anderson; and her daughter-in-law Sue Rider.

A Memorial Service will be Saturday, September 24, 2022, at 11:00 A.M. at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Prairie du Chien, inurnment in the Wauzeka Cemetery in Wauzeka, WI. Friends may call at the church on Saturday from 9:00 A.M. until the time of services. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Sugar Creek Bible Camp in Ferryville, WI. 

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