Funeral services for Dorothy Kuester age 96 of West Point, NE will be held on Thursday, January 25, 2018 at 10:30 a.m. at the Immanuel Lutheran Church, rural Beemer, NE, with Pastor Robert Mayes officiating. Interment will be in the Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery, with a luncheon to follow at the Beemer American Legion Hall. Visitation will be on Wednesday from noon to 8:00 p.m., with the family present from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., at the Minnick Funeral Home in West Point and will continue on Thursday at the church from 9:00 a.m. until the time of the service.

Dorothy passed away on Sunday, January 21, 2018 at the Colonial Haven Nursing Home in Beemer, NE.

Dorothy Clara Ropers was born February 6, 1921, at the family farm in Cuming County west of West Point. She was the middle child of Henry and Sophia Stark Ropers. She had five sisters and one brother. She was a lifetime member of Immanuel Lutheran Church where she was baptized, confirmed and married.
Dorothy attended Cuming County Rural School District #3 and Immanuel Lutheran Parochial School, rural Beemer. She was an eighth grade graduate. Dorothy was unable to attend high school because it was necessary for her to work on the farm.
She was proud to be very fast at picking corn by hand and tossing it into the wagon. The Ropers family worked hard on the farm tending to crops and a variety of animals and fowl. Butchering, canning and gardening sustained their food needs.
All six of the girls were taught the necessary domestic skills to prepare them for married life and parenting. The family balanced hard work with fun and had Christian values. Dorothy's zest for life, strong work ethic and integrity were a strong influence in the lives of her children and grandchildren. She will be remembered also for her skills in drama and goofy pranks. She wrote witty short stories and poetry as well as many letters to friends and relatives.
Dorothy lived in Omaha as a young woman and was employed as a housekeeper for several families. After an appropriate courtship, she married the love of her life, Melvin Kuester on October 16, 1941.
They believed that soil is life and soil makes life. They were good stewards to the land they farmed. Dorothy capably ran the corn picker and the baler. Melvin was just as willing to bake pies and cookies. Always they worked together and were an incredible role model.
They were parents to four daughters and one son. Dorothy took pride in keeping our hair in curls and sewing our clothes. They sacrificed so we could all take music lessons and had the opportunity to go to college
When first married they lived with Melvin's father Martin and his Aunt Onie. This land was settled in 1866 and later homesteaded by ancestors of the Kuester family. After three years, the family moved to a farm place one and one half miles west of the home place where they spent the next six years. They then returned to the Kuester farm when Melvin's father and Aunt Onie moved to West Point in 1951. In 1983 they lived in the house Melvin's father had built at 118 South Oak in West Point.
Melvin and Dorothy square danced for 35 years. They also enjoyed round dancing and travel, playing cards and attending church.
Melvin died July 15, 2002. Dorothy enjoyed many years of traveling with family, card clubs, Cuming County fairs, hosting and attending garage sales, and above all her circle of friends and family.
In August of 2012, she suddenly became blind due to temporal arteritis. Colonial Haven became her new home. She was known to burst out in song, tried to get a grasp of her surroundings without the sense of vision and maintained her good humor.
Her death came without pain and peacefully as she anxiously awaited being in her heavenly home with so many who had passed before her.
Our family is so blessed.

Survivors include the children and families--
Neva's husband Clay and wife Patsy Schoessler of Lewisville, TX
Carla and husband Bryan Grayson, and Calvin and wife Angela Schoessler
Phyllis and husband Keith Vandenberge of Denver, CO
Kris Vandenberge and wife Kylie Hansen, Kevin and Kirsten Vandenberge, and Karin Vandenberge
Kevin and Bonnie Kai of Wakefield, NE
Jesse and Allison Kai, Andrea and Levi Trautman, and Brandon and Stacey Kai
Gary and wife Linda Kuester of West Point, NE
Erin Kuester and husband Matt Main, Ryan Kuester, and Cody Kuester
Judy and husband Ed Molvig of Bancroft, NE
Jenni and Tom Halstead, Jeremy and Gina Uhing, Jill and Greg Kreikemeier, and Julie and Keary Raabe
22 Great Grandchildren
Dorothy is preceded in death by her parents, her husband Melvin of over 60 years, her daughter Neva Schoessler, infant great granddaughter Lauryn Trautman, as well as all of her siblings and their spouses--Olivia and Elvin Pierce, Mildred and Arnold Daberkow, Delilah and Arnold Ott, Katherine and Rev. Delbert Thies, Waline and Doris Ropers, and Caroline and Leland Horst as well as nieces and nephews all precious to Dorothy.