Richard Wayne Merrihew, age 93, was born as the only child to Bert Loyd & Florence Mary (Moulton) Merrihew January 2, 1932, in Bethany, MO. He passed away peacefully December 2nd at Stonehill Health Center in Dubuque Iowa, with his family at his side.  To celebrate Richard’s life family and friends may visit from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., on Saturday, December 6, 2025, at GracePoint Church, 1100 Windsor Avenue.  Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m., at the church.  Burial will be at a later date in Oakland Memorial Cemetery, Oakland, Nebraska.  Behr Funeral Home is assisting Richard’s family.

As a young child, he grew up on the Merrihew Ranch in northwest Nebraska near Ashby, NE until second grade, then continued to live in Bethany, MO, where he graduated from high school in 1949. He later graduated with an Electrical and Electronics Engineering degree from the International Correspondence School and Capitol Radio.

He married Shirley Ann Wedergren on July 25, 1953, in Oakland, NE, by the Evangelical Free Church Pastor.  They were married 67 wonderful years. She was his soul mate and the love of his life. She went to heaven March 30, 2020.

He worked as an Electrical Technician/Engineer most of his life starting at Consumer Public Power in Nebraska in 1949, and retired from Interstate Power in Dubuque, IA in 1998. The major part of his employment was with Public and Private Power.

He served in the Marine Corp from 1951 to 1952, during the Korean War as a Weapons Instructor. He became an Amateur Radio operator in 1958, he had an Extra Class License, his call letters were KØPLX and he enjoyed being an active member of the Great River Amateur Radio Club in Dubuque, IA. He enjoyed motorcycle riding, gardening and talking on his amateur radios to people all over the world. He also had a great passion for the pre-born children in this world and gave many prayers, contributions, and Ultrasound equipment to The Clarity Clinic in Dubuque, Iowa and the Heartland Pregnancy Center of Ottumwa, Iowa. He and Shirley were always hosting family and friends at their home. They loved supporting missionaries all over the world, even going to personally visit some of them in Africa.

When he was 22 years old, he made the most important decision in his life. He started a personal relationship with the Son of God, Jesus Christ. This relationship changed his whole world view and how he lived out his life of integrity, honor, diligence, and hard work.  He was an active church attendee at many churches in the Dubuque area, most recently GracePoint of Dubuque Iowa. His greatest wish is for every person he knows to also have that same relationship and to know God as Creator of the universe and have a close friend through a relationship with Jesus Christ. If you want to know more how to have that personal relationship you can ask any of his daughters about this “Good News”, so that you too can experience eternal life in heaven and meet him and Shirley again in eternity.

He was preceded in death by his wife Shirley in March 2020, parents Florence Merrihew when he was 16 years old, and his father Bert Merrihew in 1987, and son Michael Harold Merrihew in 1960.

He is survived by daughters Zelda Mae (Mark) Anderson and children Michael Anderson & JinHee (Gage) Martin, and daughter Anna Lee Murphy and daughters Fallon Murphy & Heidi Murphy & her son Isaac Birch, son Elijah Birch & fiancée Katie Wright great great granddaughter Alaiya, daughter Adaya Birch & son Ozieah Murphy, and Sara Lynn (Zbig) Piekielny and daughter Jadwiga (Greg) Hinzpeter.

Cards and memorials in Richard’s memory may be mailed to Behr Funeral home, 1491 Main Street, Dubuque, Iowa 52001, Attn. Richard Merrihew Family.

Online condolences may be left for the family at www.behrfuneralhome.com