Merlin W. Spieker, of Adell, went to his eternal home in heaven on March 21, 2024, with his family at his
side. He is now with the Savior he faithfully served for 89 years.
Merlin was born in the Town of Sherman on July 11, 1934, a son of the late Otto and Elvira Janke
Spieker. He was baptized on July 22, 1934 and was confirmed on March 21, 1948 at St. John Lutheran
Church, Sherman Center, where he remained a member his whole life.
His childhood was spent on the farm in rural Random Lake with his parents and sister. The values of
faith, family, and hard work were instilled in him from an early age. He attended school at St. John
Lutheran School, Sherman Center, and went on to continue working on the farm and eventually taking it
over.
On June 16, 1956, he married the Pastor’s daughter, Lois Margaret Zapf, at their home church with Rev.
Zapf officiating. They began their life together on the family farm, farming the land, raising ponies, and
later raising pigs. Merlin took such pride in taking care of the farm with Lois at his side until they sold
the farm to their son in 1988.
Together they were blessed with three children, who would continue to be the light of Merlin’s life
throughout the years. All of them live nearby and Merlin looked forward to and greatly enjoyed his daily
visits with them, especially after Lois’ passing in 1999.
Merlin also worked full time as an assembler at Mercury Marine in Fond du Lac, and retired from there
after 44 years of hard work and dedicated service to a job he truly loved. There he met many friends
that would stay dear to him after he retired.
Merlin was an honest, hard-working man, who loved his family and had many friends. He enjoyed
snowmobiling in his younger years and even went into business for a short time with a good friend of
his. He had a passion for motorcycles and took many trips on his Honda Gold Wing trike with his
motorcycle friends. He was an avid turkey hunter with lots of successful hunts on the farm. After his
son took over the farm, he would help his son and grandsons during pumpkin season and would drive
the tractor for hayrides. He loved meeting at the local mini mart for coffee with his friends each
morning before the pandemic hit. He took such joy in spending time with his grandchildren and great-
grandchildren. They always brought out his beaming smile and he loved cracking his witty jokes when
they were around.
Survivors include his three children, Debbie (Paul) Burmesch, Tom (Annette) Spieker, and Sarah (James)
Arndt, all of Random Lake; six grandchildren, Angie Burgard (Aaron Beck) of Random Lake, Jeremy
Sauter (Nicole Jahner) of Dickinson, ND, Ross Spieker, Ashley (Coty) Bahr, all of Random Lake, Allison
(Jeremy) Neerhof of West Bend, and Alyssa (Will) Franke of Fond du Lac; five great-grandchildren, Alexia
Dutton, Adalynn Bahr, Alliver Franke, Maverick Sauter, Asher Neerhof, and another great-grandchild on
the way; nieces, nephews, cousins, and many other relatives and friends, including his dear friend, Jean.
He was preceded in death by his wife of 42 years, Lois; grandson, Tyler Spieker; parents, Otto (Elvira)
Spieker; in-laws, Rev. Edmund (Florence) Zapf; infant brother, Wallace Spieker; sister and brother-in-law,
Lucille (Gary) Goetsch; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, David (Marilyn) Zapf and Tom (Pat) Kurtz; and
nephew and niece, Joel (Ronda) Goetsch.
Visitation will be held at St. John Lutheran Church, Sherman Center, on Saturday, April 6 th , from 1 pm to
3 pm. The service will be at 3 pm, with Pastor Christopher Gillespie officiating. A private burial will
follow.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. John Lutheran Church, Sherman Center.
The Suchon Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Plymouth is serving the family. For online
condolences, please visit www.suchonfh.com.
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