Richard "Dick" Trytten

Richard “Dick” Trytten, age 78 of Decorah, IA passed away on Friday, June 27, 2025, at his home surrounded by family.

Funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 , at First Lutheran Church, 604 W Broadway St., Decorah, IA with Pastor Mike Wilker presiding. Burial will be in the Lutheran Cemetery at a later date.

Visitation will be from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. on Monday, July 7, 2025, at Helms Funeral Home, 306 East Water St., in Decorah.  There will be no visitation prior to the funeral on Tuesday morning.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be written to the family and mailed to Helms Funeral Home, 306 E. Water Street, Decorah, IA 52101.  Donations will be made to the following: The Winneshiek County Historical Society, the Winneshiek County Celebration of Life and Winn Med Hospice.

Dick was born to Norman and Unabelle (Chandler) Trytten on October 19, 1946. As the youngest of three children, he grew up in Ridgeway and Decorah before graduating from Decorah High School in 1964.  Throughout those years, he was part of the Decorah Kilties and played basketball, golf and baseball.  After high school he began working at Decorah State Bank until he was drafted into the Marines in 1965 and spent two years in Cherry Point, North Carolina.  After the Marines, he attended college in Mankato.  Following the untimely death of his mother, he returned to Decorah and to Decorah State Bank.  Dick married Dianne (Einck) Trytten on February 3, 1973.  Together they had 3 children, Rik, Ryan and Emily.  He continued his banking career with Decorah State Bank and Viking State Bank until his retirement in 2011.

Dick was very involved in the community.  He was a founding member of the Decorah Area Coin Club, served many years in many different roles with the Winneshiek County Fair and shared his talents volunteering for a variety of other organizations, including the Decorah Jaycee’s, the Elks Lodge, Oneota Golf and Country Club, the Luther Quarterback Club, the Red Cross, and any other organization that he crossed paths with.  He held the position of treasurer for almost everything he belonged to and he always gave 100%. He was honored with the Distinguished Service Award for the many years he contributed to the Winneshiek County Fair Board.

He was passionate about the history of Decorah and Ridgeway. He was an avid collector of virtually everything from the area.  He was also a distinguished coin appraiser.  He enjoyed continuing the tradition of the Nordic fest medals by designing the medals and manning the booth for many years.

He played softball for many years, mostly with the Wapsie Capon team and was a member at Oneota Golf and Country Club.  In retirement, he continued to golf and enjoyed golf trips with friends, traveling and winter trips down south with Dianne.  He loved Euchre, Bridge, Poker and any other card game imaginable.  He enjoyed tinkering in his workshop and building anything he could out of things around the house.  He especially loved building things with his grandchildren.  His biggest joy was attending his grandchildren’s various sporting events and spending time making memories with them. He had no hesitation to jump in the car for a 3 and a half hour drive to catch a ballgame and made every effort to catch every event he could.  When he wasn’t watching his grandkids he enjoyed helping at the Decorah High School football games on the chain gang.

Dick is survived by his wife, Dianne, and his children and grandchildren, Ryan (Sadie) Trytten, Torey, Layla, Davin and Harper of Urbandale, IA and Emily (Todd) Kellenberger, Rowan, Audrey, Henrik and Bennett of Ankeny, IA;  Daughter-in-law, Julie Simiele of Decorah, Larsson and Anawrenn; As well as two great grandchildren; His brother, Chris (Ann) Trytten of Henderson, NV and sister, Kay Schmiesing of Waterloo, IA; Sisters-in-law, Sandy (Vern) Thuente of Decorah, Annette (Karl) Bohr-Wiltgen of Ossian, IA, Linda (Bill) Ludwig of Ft. Atkinson, IA, and many nieces and nephews.

Dick was preceded in death by his son, Rik Trytten; His parents, Norman and Unabelle Trytten; His father-in-law and mother-in-law Jerome Einck and Norma (Koch) Einck; Brothers-in-law, Kenneth Bohr and Erl Schmiesing; Nephews, Michael Schmiesing and Adam Bohr.