Donald Lloyd Emerick

Donald Lloyd Emerick, 75, of Middleton, Wisconsin, passed away on December 15, 2023.

Visitation will be held on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2023, 1:30 – 2:00, at Bethany United Methodist Church, 3910 Mineral Point Rd., Madison, WI 53705. Visitation will be followed by a service and informal storytelling from 2:00 – 4:00 in Fellowship Hall at Bethany.

Don (aka DL) was born on March 2, 1948, in Peoria, Illinois, the son of William Mitchell and Mary Ellen (Carr) Emerick. Don was preceded in death by his mother, father, his first wife, Susan Winard, his brother, Clifford Emerick, and stepfather, Harold Moss. His life ended too early because of heart failure.

Survivors include his wife of 48 years, Blanche Emerick of Middleton, Wisconsin; three children: Shari Emerick-Winard of New Rochelle, New York, Benjamin Emerick of Middleton, and Sonja Emerick (Kristian Hostettler) of Middleton; five grandchildren: Emily, Theodore, Adele, Zelda, and Clara; one great-granddaughter, Lily; three brothers: Michael Emerick (Sandy) of Nolensville, Tennessee, William Emerick (Carma) of West Lafayette, Indiana, and John Emerick (Linda) of Santa Barbara, California; and three step-siblings: Peggy Moss of Keokuk, Iowa, Sharon Moss of Iowa City, Iowa, and Dennis Moss of Ft. Collins, Colorado.

Don graduated from Fairfield Community High School in 1966 as valedictorian and president of his graduating class. His outstanding talents in mathematics paved the way for him to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and he graduated from it in 1970 with a degree in Political Science. He subsequently had a long career in technical capacities for the University of Illinois in Urbana, Control Data Corporation in Minneapolis, and McDonnell Douglas in St. Louis. Fulfilling an ambition that had been put on hold, he attended and graduated from St. Louis University Law School in his late forties and became a member of the Missouri Bar Association.

In the fall of 1974, on the campus of the University of Illinois, he met Blanche Bante through their mutual interests in the Plato Educational (computer-aided learning) System. They married on August 16, 1975. The early phases of their careers and the work-related relocations they entailed were an extension of their work on the Plato Educational System.

In addition to his love for his immediate and extended family, he loved the Plato System as if it also was his child. A voracious reader, he could talk politics and the law for hours and hours. When he didn’t have an audience, he “putzed” around the yard and honed his prized tomatoes, somehow finding time for crossword puzzles and other online word games every day. His fishing consisted of teaching the next generation how to catch and release sunfish.

Don received outstanding medical care and compassion from the UW-Hospital staff. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be directed to UW Foundation, the Excellence in Cardiovascular Medicine Fund, US Bank Lockbox 78807 Milwaukee, WI 53278, or supportuw.org/giveto/cardiovascularmedicine.