Delbert A. Dietrich, 84, of Ellis, Kansas died Tuesday, December 17, 2019, at HaysMed in Hays. He was born August 14, 1935 and grew up on a farm 10 miles northwest of Ellis. He attended the Adair School in Trego County and then Ellis High School. He was a lifelong farmer who had also been a carpenter, a technician, a machinist who developed a passion for lapidary work, a welder, an oilman and the list goes on. He was a very educated man, well beyond his formal schooling years due to his passion for reading and love of Kansas history, Native American history and the Old West.
Delbert taught his kids to respect the land and always told them "that if you take care of the land, the land will take care of you." He planted many windbreaks on the farm, terraced and rotated crops early on, receiving awards and recognition for his conservation efforts. He stocked the ponds with fish and the farm with quail. He will be remembered for his dedication to his family, working long hours providing for his family, farming the family farm - but his greatest satisfaction came from raising cattle. He loved his cattle.
Delbert’s family will receive guests at a visitation on Friday December 20, 2019 from 4 PM to 8 PM at the Ellis Baptist Church, 107 West 9th Street, Ellis, KS. A Memorial Service at the church followed by an inurnment in the Mt. Hope Cemetery will be held in January 2020 and an updated obituary will be provided with those dates/times.
Memorial contributions are suggested to the Humane Society of the High Plains. Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or by email at [email protected]