Deanna Jean Lytner

Deanna Jean Lytner, 82, recently of Neenah, Wisconsin, passed away on November 27, with her daughter by her side. If one quote could define a personality, Shakespeare captured Dee’s perfectly when he wrote “Though she be but little, she is fierce."

Born on September 13, 1942 in Des Moines, Iowa, Dee was a spitfire from an early age. At 16 or 17 years old she hitchhiked all the way to California with a friend, with only the spike high heels they were wearing for protection. She also worked as a go-go dancer for a short time before starting work as a secretary, first for a judge and then for an agricultural equipment company for many years; her shorthand and typing speeds were legendary. 

It was in her later life that she discovered her true calling as an educational paraprofessional. She became a volunteer at her grandson’s school, Riverwood Elementary in McHenry, Illinois, and then started working there as a teacher’s assistant. Eager to do more, she earned her GED and went through training to become a paraprofessional; she was then able to work with children who needed one-on-one help. She had a special ability to talk to children on their own level without being condescending to them and was able to make a positive difference in many young lives. Several of her colleagues there have mentioned that her smile lit up a room.

In 1976 Dee married the love of her life, Tony Lytner, and they were together until his death in 2008. Their happiest times were spent at their cabin in Black River Falls, Wisconsin, and their ashes will be scattered together in the river there so that they may flow through eternity together.

Dee is survived by her children, grandchildren, sisters, nieces, nephews and many friends who will hold her in their hearts and minds, and preceded in death by her husband, mother and others who have already joyfully reunited with her.

Dee did not want a service, but would have loved for people to celebrate her life by making a donation to Helping Paws Animal Shelter in Woodstock, Illinois; an organization that brought her much joy and was very dear to her heart.